'A One Night Stand' DIY Comedy returns to Pahiatua

Chris Ingham, Pahiatua GP, has a slew of professionaL performances behind him.

DIY Comedy returns to Pahiatua for A One Night Stand on Saturday, April 9, headlined by Kajun Brooking and featuring Chris Ingham, Karen Leslie, Ben Tito Caldwell and hosted by Richard Dryden.

Chris is familiar to Pahiatua residents as a GP, but over the past five years, he has performed stand-up comedy predominantly in Palmerston North and the Manawatū region. Since then, he has gone on to achieve success as a two-time Raw Comedy Quest finalist, made the final of the Wellington Regional Pun Battle and has a slew of professional performances behind him.

"I've performed with big names on the New Zealand circuit, such as Brendhan Lovegrove, Nick Rado and Raybon Kan, and it's been absolutely great talking to, watching and learning from them," says Chris.

"But honestly, if I go on stage, and leave feeling I've done the job and given the audience a good 5, 10, 15, however many minutes is a highlight. Some of my favourite gigs have been in front of five people arranged in a semicircle right in front of the mic, and we've all had a great time."

Being a familiar face to many people in Pahiatua is particularly challenging for Chris when he has a gig there.

"It just adds to the pressure of making sure you are actually funny. People have come to watch you because you believe you're funny, so you'd better show them that. Not just in Pahiatua, but in other contexts. My sister came to a gig I did in New Plymouth recently, and that was probably the most nervous I'd been before a gig in a long time," Chris adds.

Comedian Kajun Brooking.

Headliner Kajun is the current Raw Comedy Quest winner and has won numerous awards over the past year and a half. He's proud of his Māori heritage and incorporates experiences from his life into his stage material.

"I'm Ngāti Porou, I'm Ngāti Kahungunu and I'm also a part of a secret underground iwi, but you'll have to come to the show to find out about that one," says Kajun.

• Warning: May contain adult themes and coarse language