Hoots @ Potterrow
Wee Yurt
Aug 9-25 (22:55)
Alex Kitson delivers an impressive debut Fringe performance in a unique and challenging venue, showcasing his impressive storytelling, physical comedy, and improvisational skills. For the uninitiated, the ‘Yurt’ venues offer something of a bargain with the devil. There is a constant flow of passing foot traffic to flyer, they are in an area known historically for ‘The Blundabuss’ and it’s annual menu of high quality off-piste comedy and performance art delights – and there is none of the sweat drenched room cramming associated with many of the smaller venues based around Edinburgh’s Old Town. On the down side, there is a hell of a lot of ‘noise bleed’. Alex Kitson, however, uses alchemic skills in the opening twenty minutes of tonight’s performance to use this unexpected additional material to weave into audience work and improvised jokes which even some of the more experienced acts I’ve seen would struggle with.
He is, to begin with, optimistic – “It’s clowns & mimes in the tent next door, so we should be fine.” After 5 minutes, the mime’s brass-based musical accompaniment kicks in, and an initial and visibly irked Kitson manages to adlib his way into the audience’s charms. He is immensely likeable, and this allows for the storytelling sections between jokes to remain genuinely captivating, and intriguing, as over the course of the hour he slowly discloses his ‘secret’, in a manner which adroitly avoids tritely trying to wedge pathos into entertainment.
The physical comedic skills on display too would be impressive even from a significantly more seasoned stand up. Extended facial punctuations which initially seem to emerge as nervous ticks are masterfully jitterbugged, paused, or stretched out to carefully complement every section of the engaging tale. Even when there aren’t jokes, there is a constant source of entertainment, and laughter, in the contortions and shameful genuflections of visage which accompany sections of the show which could otherwise fall into the ‘trauma awards bait’ category. He is clearly serious about making comedy, and pulling together a full hour of material for a Fringe audience for the first time, and succeeding in this, is the sign of a committed and impressive talent. He riffs on the sexual mores of suffragettes, delivers a genuinely unique Brexit joke, and at one point a literal ‘mic drop’ moment is beautifully delivered.
Kitsons charm, delivery, and material all hit the spot with the whole room. All eyes and ears noticeably focused on him for the full 60 minutes. If I had to pick any holes in the performance it would be the very minor gripe that he once or twice ‘explains himself’ to the audience, as if we needed winning over. I hope that Kitson continues to attract decent sized audiences and is tempted to come back in ‘25 for a sophomore show; I amm excited to see how this material, and his ‘act’ in general continue to develop over the next year.
Ewan Law
themumble.uk 