Half an hour outside Edinburgh lies a small town called Livingston. Almost equidistant between Glasgow and Edinburgh, Livingston suffers from an identity crisis, unable to claim the West or East Coast. It is this identity crisis which Eva Peroni explores in her show Jungled. Though born and bred in the town, she didn’t automatically feel much of a sense of pride and patriotism for Scotland, which only depleted further when she moved to Costa Rica for college, aged 17. From there she reckoned with another aspect of her identity — her sexuality. A hike, no shoes, some weed brownies, and a buzzcut later, and she’s back in Scotland, studying at the University of Edinburgh and performing standup regularly.
Her debut Fringe show, Jungled, is a selection box of puns, references to Victorian children, accents (not all human), and even a Scottish culture test. The hour is impeccably executed, offers interesting perspectives, and is certifiably hilarious. Though the show’s variety had a mixed bag of an audience cackling throughout, it is best reserved for younger generations, particularly students. As a student myself, though, I found Jungled to be one of the most relatable Fringe shows I’ve seen, from horrific job prospects and useless degrees to insanely posh students.
While themes of AI have popped up in a lot of standup comedy this year, Peroni’s take on this is certainly the funniest I’ve seen. Her simultaneous admiration and jealously of AI is both ridiculous and realistic. After all, there’s no denying that “AI’s got so many friends at university.”
Despite being one of the youngest faces at the Fringe, Eva Peroni is already making tidal waves in the local comedy scene, and Jungled makes it clear why. Students at the festival this year shouldn’t skip this show, or else they might miss the rise of a fantastic comedian, right under their noses.
Eva Peroni: Jungled is running until 30 August at Nook/Wee Room in Gilded Balloon Teviot. Buy tickets here.
Image by Ethan Doherty, provided to The Student as press material.
