Review by Eve Nugent
The Big Yurt at Hoots @ Potterrow
After delivering some important ‘yurt admin’, Alex Kitson exits the stage before re-entering with bursting energy – The Big Yurt at Hoots in Potterrow has never felt more like Wembley. The stand-up comedian is back for his third run at the Edinburgh Fringe, this time with a brand-new set all about attention, or rather, our modern-day lack of it.
The opening anecdote takes us to Kitson’s home in rural Devon, when his parents decided to stop paying the wi-fi bill – the ultimate Gen-Z disaster. Instead of mystically finding himself or reconnecting with nature as he hopes, Kitson finds himself yearning to scroll. He starts shouting podcasts out of the window just to feel sane, beginning a self-reflective journey about his reliance on the internet. From this premise, Kitson weaves a tapestry of stories that gradually builds into an overarching arc which questions what our future might look like in an increasingly technology-dependent world. While this may sound moralising or a path well-trodden, Kitson is never preachy, instead offering a self-aware and relatable critique of AI.
Confessing that it is purely to seem more intelligent, Kitson claims his favourite book is The Great Gatsby, even if he couldn’t explain the plot to save his own life. Yet the novel’s final line cleverly ties the end of the show into a neat bow: ‘so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past’. Cutting through the humour, it neatly captures his reflection on our tendency to endlessly chase the next dream, the next development, rather than allowing ourselves to appreciate what we already have.
Kitson is uniquely charming, and his repeated claim to keep things ‘100% real’ with the audience is certainly fulfilled. His stream of consciousness and witticisms about current issues make for an engaging and highly entertaining hour.
Uniquely Charming
Alex Kitson: Now Look Here runs Venue 243, The Big Yurt at Hoots @ Potterrow at 20:45
Running time – Sixty minutes
Review by Eve Nugent (contact@corrblimey.uk)
An undergraduate French student at the University of Edinburgh, Eve has a diverse interest in theatre and performance. Her primary devotion is acting, predominantly at Bedlam Theatre with her fellow students, but also with French group ‘Les Escogriffes’ who perform annually at the French Institute of Scotland.
Her creative attention stretches also to classical music, as she enjoys playing the flute, piano and guitar. She thus looks forward to watching whatever the Fringe has to offer, irrespective of genre!
