one4review | On 09, Aug 2026

Livingston’s Peroni enters the stage like a woman possessed, a whirling dervish of energy whipping the sold-out crowd into levels of frenzy not seen in Edinburgh since Chappell Roan was in town last year, with the mic stand probably going to complain to Health and Safety after developing whiplash. And this is only her trapdoor and crowd work. Surely she can’t keep this level of excitement going for an hour? Of course she can. She’s like Sam Kinison in his prime, and she’s Eva Peroni.

In the first half, family background gets a playful jab, especially her father. He doesn’t just get poked at; he practically gets shish-kebabbed with comedy barbs, from lycanthropic conspiracy theories about where he disappears to at certain times of the year, to the question of whether there’s more he’s not telling us. The frightening thing is he’s in the audience today, and he’s having a ball.

The obligatory AI Fringe bit is thankfully original and a joy. Sharing flats with posh university friends, racist roundabouts, locals Susan Boyle and Lewis Capaldi all get it in the neck. The marine dissertation kills, and her love of peeing standing up is just genius. It’s pure Roger Corman lo-fi chaos, but delivered with the confidence of a pro.
The second half is where the energy slightly dips, but she’s in full control. She’s even more politically cutting, with tales of being sent to the United World College in Costa Rica by a relative; the misadventures and awakening that followed; political UN flat-sharing; and discovering a world considerably removed from Livingston. She’s also deeply patriotic, and the Scottish quiz is a joy and playful with the audience.

At the beginning, she starts off with some background as a law student and the pressures of the real world, with comedy becoming the fallback. One feels the law degree will be jettisoned shortly.

Tonight, the stars have aligned, and at 22, this bright young thing that could has all the potential to become a major player that will.
When she hits, she hits with a bang. Bigger venues are just around the corner.

4 ****
Reviewed by Steve H.
Nook at Gilded Balloon Teviot
Until 30th August (excl. 17th)
16.40 – 17.40