Stoph Demetriou @ Laughing Horse, Free Sisters

As a small clutch assemble in the glorified karaoke booth that is the Wee Room, there’s a certain unspoken trepidation amongst everyone here that whatever happens tonight, it’s going to be right in our faces. This 'intimacy' is realised quickly and bluntly early in the show, as the lanky, striking figure of Stoph Demetriou emerges from behind a makeshift shower curtain in the corner after yet another costume change and, well, without spoiling this particular surprise it’s safe to say Demetriou is very generous with his soft drinks.

Demetriou's debut solo Edinburgh show takes the form of a ersatz TED talk, lecturing the audience about stupidity and confidence which somewhat inevitably begins to reveal the performer’s own weaknesses surrounding the construction of his own show. That's right, what we have here is another Edinburgh show about writing an Edinburgh show, a trope that is beginning to wear out its already very thin welcome especially when it becomes increasingly difficult to mine any more comedy out of self-reflexive and fouth-wall breaking routines
bemoaning how hard it is to be funny.

Demetriou has some very well-produced video segments, some ambitious technical wizardy and an absolute blinder of routine about a police sketch artist, but as he himself repeatedly points out there isn’t really enough relevant material to fill the hour. It is a clunky mix of high technical expertise covering up low comedic ambition, although there are elements to admire here. 

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Stoph Demetriou: The Dunning-Kruger Effect, Laughing Horse at The Free Sisters (The Wee Room), until 28 Aug, 11.10pm, free