Brie Keatley
I have been wanting to see Brynley Stent for quite some time and managed to luck out with my first experience being the chaotic adventure that is Pus Goose. The show is bursting with energy and sketches galore which tickles the comedy lover in me.
Any sketch/stand-up show with a premise immediately has my attention and the premise for Pus Goose is intriguing to say the least. Stent tells us about a board game she used to play with her friends called Nightmare which included everyone writing their fears and putting them in a little pot in the middle of the board. Throughout the show, Stent reads out some of her fears that leads to us learning about the titular goose who haunted a recurring nightmare Stent had as a child. These fears are then followed by either bits of anecdotal stand up or completely out there sketches. The formula works extremely well with Stent’s fast paced comedy.
My favourite aspect of the show is just how genuine Stent is. We as an audience are invited to share our fears (But keeping it light, obviously.) and the way she interacts with the crowd is so gentle yet encouraging that at no point does it feel like awkward audience interaction. We also see Stent brilliantly handle a mic issue, defiantly taking off the technology and proclaiming ‘I’m going to rawdog it. I went to drama school!’ Her energy is so infectious that my face hurts from smiling and laughing by the end.
Stent is also an incredible sketch performer. She easily slips between characters in absurd situations and has such a knack for completely throwing the audience when it comes to our expectations. I won’t give it away, but my favourite bit was a recurring segment about a reptile, purely for Stent’s incredible physicality.
Pus Goose is a high energy piece that is never boring. I am in awe of Stent’s ability to connect to the crowd and her commitment to the bit throughout her sketches. This show is an absolute must watch that I will be thinking about for the rest of the festival.
Pus Goose is on at BATS Theatre from the 14th - 18th of May as part of the New Zealand International Comedy Festival. Tickets are available here
My favourite aspect of the show is just how genuine Stent is. We as an audience are invited to share our fears (But keeping it light, obviously.) and the way she interacts with the crowd is so gentle yet encouraging that at no point does it feel like awkward audience interaction. We also see Stent brilliantly handle a mic issue, defiantly taking off the technology and proclaiming ‘I’m going to rawdog it. I went to drama school!’ Her energy is so infectious that my face hurts from smiling and laughing by the end.
Stent is also an incredible sketch performer. She easily slips between characters in absurd situations and has such a knack for completely throwing the audience when it comes to our expectations. I won’t give it away, but my favourite bit was a recurring segment about a reptile, purely for Stent’s incredible physicality.
Pus Goose is a high energy piece that is never boring. I am in awe of Stent’s ability to connect to the crowd and her commitment to the bit throughout her sketches. This show is an absolute must watch that I will be thinking about for the rest of the festival.
Pus Goose is on at BATS Theatre from the 14th - 18th of May as part of the New Zealand International Comedy Festival. Tickets are available here