Rollercoaster review – fizzy tricks and funky escapades from a juggling master | Edinburgh festival 2024

If juggling is a close second to breaking to become an Olympic sport, Team USA would definitely want Wes Peden on their team. Peden, a world record-holding associate artist with Gandini Juggling, combines mastery of hoops, pins and balls with his lifelong love of roller coasters in this colorful set of funky escapades.

From bright orange hair to feet, Peden looks like he’s been to Tango. But his tricks fizz with their own spicy effects as he unveils some eye-catching contraptions. First up is a giant transparent tube that he wraps around his arms to mimic the crazy twists and turns of the amusement park ride. Balls are shot into the air, caught in the tube and sent hurtling around this one-man rollercoaster, to a soundtrack that captures the screams of thrill seekers and the chugging machinery.

Peden performs on a stage dominated by three enormous blue inflatable structures, designed by Félix Chameroy, which together resemble the attraction’s winding circuits. They make a striking backdrop, but are less successfully incorporated into his routines.

“I like the shape of pretzels,” our host says in the first of several irreverent voice-overs that flesh out his personal story. These snapshots of his American youth lend a sweetness to the stunts that follow. Circus tricks are sometimes performed with a kind of self-aggrandizing showmanship. But with Peden, there’s a more modest pleasure in the performance, a desire to enjoy yourself even without the juggling equipment: witness the torso-twisting sequence in which he recreates various roller coaster designs.

Pulsating dance music heightens the focus for the tricks, with added ambient beeps for an otherworldly sequence in which his spinning plates resemble spaceships. Then there’s a light comic relief when Peden takes a break to lie down onstage, this quick breather underscoring the difficulty of what he’s up to.

While children of all ages will respond to this Gandini production, it is never spoiled, even when a balloon, parasol and dartboard are added to his arsenal. In his voice-over journey through the history of rollercoasters, the sensations experienced by his fellow passengers go largely unnoticed – vox pops could add an extra dimension to this solo ode. But while he doesn’t mimic the specific rhythms of the fairground ride, he manages to create moments of wild entertainment and gentle whimsy.