Review: Alastair Clark BA (Hons) – Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh

While you’d be forgiven for thinking that Alastair Clark BA (Hons) would delve into the pitfalls of spending three years studying for an Arts degree in the current dire financial situation, it is in fact a pretty light-hearted journey through student life, from freshers’ week to graduation.

For anyone who remembers the first misguided attempts to reinvent yourself in week one of term; the despair of watching a girl (or boy) you’ve fallen head-over-heels for hook up with someone else at the student ball; or the disgust of sharing your mouldy student digs with legions of slugs, Clark’s infectious enthusiasm will sweep you along with his celebration of student life in all its dingy glory.

A mix of photos, video, music and voiceover adds depth to the live performance. A particular highlight was the visual portrayal of how to seduce a girl on the dance floor, with Clark’s pre-recorded description of his moves accompanied by hilarious facial expressions, as he swings his unwitting partner (a female volunteer plucked from the audience) around the stage.

It’s an entertaining hour, but you can’t help feeling that a lot of these stories could be told by your uni mates on night of drunken reminiscence.

Clark’s effort merits a solid 2:2, but perhaps next year with some more original material he could be climbing into 2:1 territory – maybe one to watch out for.

Date of live review: Sunday 18 August 2013

Alastair Clark BA (Hons) runs as part of the PBH Free Fringe at the Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh until 24 August 2013.