Lolly

The Pleasance until August 31

Two stars

Brief moments of inspiration are smothered by a general lack of originality in Lolly Adefope’s debut Fringe show. This is character-based comedy structured as an open mic night in a local community centre, allowing the 24-year-old to take aim at some disappointingly easy targets – Gemma, the self-deluded wannabe stand-up; X, the self-deluded activist rapper; Wendy, the self-deluded spotlight-hogging host. Their similarly enthusiastic-but-dumb absence of self-awareness means we’re always encouraged to laugh at them from a condescending height (although actual laughs are scarce, as these characters’ acts are deliberately awful and Adefope’s insights into their behaviour very shallow). But scattered throughout are glimpses of the clever comedian Adefope could one day become: old Horald’s affecting belief that John Legend is his estranged son; ‘Lolly’ herself as a stage-shy contestant; the knowing adverts that punctuate routines. There’s a really interesting meta-concept here that just can’t push past the pack of character stereotypes Adefope has brought to the stage.

Alan Morrison