A dark and dingy detective’s office, on a dark and dingy street, in a dark and dingy city, you know the type. This one-man noir show has everything you’d expect from the classic detective noir story: a far too relaxed and sharp detective, an untrustworthy femme fatale and a whole load of dodgy crooks.
One may assume from the title of the show that this is going to be a multi rolling piece; one man throwing on mustaches and hats, adapting accents galore, but this show takes a much cleverer approach. Our main man (unfortunately I was unable to find the actor’s name) plays the title role of Detective Blank, using lighting and prerecorded voice overs to play the other roles, voice recordings made by the same actor and all very impressively different. The actor’s talented performance allows use to know exactly what is going on, where these invisible characters are and exactly what character holds the power in each scene. If you closed your eyes, it would be hard to guess that he is alone.
A clever lighting design mimics the shadows of the back streets of the city and keeps us up to date with scene changes whilst a classic detective noir sound track plays in the back creating the perfect ambiance. It’s easy to forget that you are in a black box theatre space.
The show is a perfect parody of the genre, and whilst the plot was very much predictable, still intriguing and fun to follow. With witty one liners and a wonderful actor, this is one show any detective fan attending the fringe should add to their list.
You can catch the final performance of Detective Blank: A One-Man Noir on the 16th August at 12:40 at C ARTS Aquila. Tickets available at: Detective Blank: A One-Man Noir | Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Reviewer: Beth Eltringham
Reviewed: 14th August 2026
North West End UK / Theatre Muse UK Rating:
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