If there’s such a thing as a love letter to the Rollercoaster in juggling form, this show is undoubtedly it.
Wes Peden, who is an Associate Artist with the astonishing troupe Gandini Juggling, has been juggling since he was five years old and has since performed around the world garnering awards, is the hand behind this particular billet doux.
Gandini Juggling, who present the show, is a world renowned London based radical juggling company formed in 1992 whose ever-evolving ensemble is made up of a core group of up to 20 virtuosic jugglers. Co-founder Sean Gandini rates Wes Peden as “the best juggler in the world,” an accolade that he very justly holds.
Peden’s recorded voice, that also speaks between acts, astutely saving his breath for the real action on stage, creates a pseudo fairground ride atmosphere, inviting the audience to buckle up and ‘smile for the camera’ in preparation for the wild ride that awaits.
He arrives full of punkish elegance dressed in an orange theme with hair dyed to match, immediately creating the playful atmosphere that totally belies the skill, acute precision and considered movement involved in the act. On stage are three giant blue inflatable shapes that echo roller coaster twists and, to the slow steady sound of the trundle of wheels on a fairground track that anticipate the thrills ahead, Peden begins his extraordinary act.
Establishing his jaw dropping skill with juggling balls, this man (who has a ‘favourite elbow’!), uses pretty much all his body to demonstrate abilities that are nothing short of miraculous. To the sound of electro beats that echo the excitement of the fairground, Peden manipulates a 4-meter transparent tube, that looks like a big friendly python, making balls spiral through it – defying any notion of what is possible. Prepare to lift your jaw from the floor when you see what he can do with a bunch of coloured hoops!
The section of the show when he spins plates, crashes cymbals and juggles a seemingly endless supply of lightweight Indian clubs with speed and efficiency, is entertaining, but seems chaotic and like a departure from the structure of the rest of the show.
Clearly a rollercoaster afficionado, Peden, dressed in a black satin top and scattering petals, mourns a catalogue of lost rollercoaster rides but lifts the mood again before a finale that has the audience on its feet in unadulterated amazement.
The show marks a welcome return to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe after eight years for Peden and its Fringe run will be Rollercoaster’s Scottish premiere and only the third time the show has ever been seen in the UK.
Venue: Assembly Roxy
Dates: 31st July to 26th August at 5pm
Age recommend : 8+
Running time: 60 mins
Irene Brown
Radio Summerhall Arts 