This Review is from August 2024

First the positives. Alex has some great jokes. He exudes nervous, energetic, scattergun enthusiasm. I’m yet to check out the comedian do a twenty-minute headline club set, but it’s easy to imagine him absolutely smashing it.

Comedians who deliver the same routine, in the same order, every night, often behave as if the next joke has just occurred to them, giving the illusion of a unique show. Alex is either great at this, or he’s making it up as he goes along. Either way, it’s a potentially exciting experience.

The show is delivered late at night in a yurt, a perfect setting for this brand of stand up.

However, in Must I Paint You a Picture? among the great gags, Alex attempts to tell a harrowing story. For some reason he thinks this is what is expected for a debut solo Edinburgh hour, and it utterly fails to land. The telling of this shocking real-life experience is constantly undermined by the comedian’s gags. He pulls the emotional punch so much it ends up a light tap.

It is important to get to know the comedian a bit, especially in a debut hour. And we do. I particularly enjoyed the story about a one-night stand with a woman who had a large mural of feminist icons her bedroom. Tales of success and failure in his hometown landed well, as did the short routine on the benefits of being a horse.

Sadly, when it comes to delivering something more deeply personal and harrowing, he’s not yet ready.

Martin Walker

Podcast interview with Alex Kitson

Tickets HERE

Reviews of Alex Kitson: Must I Paint You a Picture? collated by the British Comedy Guide HERE

Alex’s Profile HERE