Chinese comedy
Encyclopedia
Chinese comedy has a long history that dates back to the Zhou Dynasty
(1100 BC to 221 BC) when the aristocracy kept jesters in their homes.
At that time, however, people in society were profoundly influenced by the teachings of Confucius. Therefore, comic shows were usually looked down upon throughout the reign of feudal China. During the late Qing Dynasty
(1644–1911) and Republic of China period, different styles of comedy began to flourish in big cities and the genres of crosstalk (in Chinese xiangsheng
), comic drama began to emerge. Since 1980s, with the rapid development of media throughout the country, different kinds of comedy began to reach their climax. They became the most favorite forms of entertainment to the populace. Nowadays, the most popular genres of Chinese comedy are summarized as Chinese skit, Chinese acrobatics, Xiangsheng
.
is a form of performance which is related to small things in our daily lives. Chinese skit is generally regarded as originating in 1980s. It has inherited advantages and developed from other forms of comedy such as stage play, xiangsheng, errenzhuan
and comic drama. One skit formulate just one topic, but with a lot of funny action, lively languages. Through promotion of Spring Festival Gala Evening
in 20 years, Chinese skit becomes a very popular artistic form in China. The first skit in China was “eating noodle” (in 1984) which was performed by Chen Peisi.
(born October 2, 1957). He is a master of Chinese skit. About 1.4 billion people look forward to his performance in Spring Festival Gala Evening every year.
in Chinese. It is a traditional Chinese comedic performance in different forms of dialogue. Crosstalk is a language art combing four basic techniques: speaking, imitating, teasing, and singing. It can be conducted by one or two performers. It is one of the most popular forms of entertainment because its language is rich in puns as well as allusions. As time passed, new development has been applied to this traditional art in order to keep pace with the times. Cross talk is a most up-to-date performance. Comedians place emphasis on creating new works and injecting new elements into this traditional works making it more relevant the current affairs. Nowadays, the most paramount ones are Shanghai style and Duikou style.
(born January 13, 1973) is the most popular crosstalk performing artist. Guo’s success is by no means from luck. Nor did he achieve the fame overnight. Previously, he had been performing in Dazhanian in Beijing
more than 10 years. Therefore he is a veteran in terms of making people laugh. Nowadays, we have a so-called “Guo Degang phenomenon” which is signified by his unique performing style with his rich cultural backgrounds especially of Tianjin and his wide variety skills of playing different instruments and singing different operas such as Peking Opera and Pingju Opera. As his name has become a household name of China, more and more young people begin to enjoy his comic shows.
----
– a most famous stand-up comedian in China nowadays. In terms of “Shanghai Qing Kou”, it originated from different forms of stand-up comedy in the local Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. It is a style of comedy where the performer speaks directly to the audience with the topics associated with the social hot spots. In the performances, the performer will include his/her personal experience and try to promote the pursuit of happy lifestyle.
(born April 22, 1967) is the founder of “Shanghai Qing Kou” as well as a representative of Shanghai style stand-up comedy. After his shows came out in 2008, he became an overnight sensation. Not only were all the tickets sold out very quickly in every his show but also thousands of people talked about Zhou Libo in that he has already become a public figure in Shanghai. Talking about urban lives, economic and political issues in a mixture of Shanghai dialect
, Putonghua
and some English words, Zhou's performances have been acclaimed by Shanghai citizens, who long for a local star to speak to their culture. .Zhou's genre, which he terms haipai qingkou or "Shanghai-style stand-up comedy", is different from Guo's xiangsheng or Xiaoshenyang's errenzhuan, they are all parts of a flourishing scene of live comic talk shows, a cultural phenomenon that has drawn more and more attention in recent years in China. Zhou Libo’s television works include “Mr. Zhou's Live Show” and “China's Got Talent”.
.
By the time of the Han Dynasty
(221 BC-220 AD),
the acrobatic art further developed in content and variety. In the Tang Dynasty
, the number of acrobats increased enormously and their performing skills improved a great deal. Chinese acrobatics can also be called a national art. In the past two decades, some acrobats in China have taken this folk art to a new height. The basics of Chinese Acrobatic are balancing, tumbling, dancing, flexibility, and strength are taught in the first two years, and students spend the next three to five years perfecting specific acts. Then, they will do their first performances when they reach the age of sixteen or seventeen.
Zhou Dynasty
The Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty. Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history, the actual political and military control of China by the Ji family lasted only until 771 BC, a period known as...
(1100 BC to 221 BC) when the aristocracy kept jesters in their homes.
At that time, however, people in society were profoundly influenced by the teachings of Confucius. Therefore, comic shows were usually looked down upon throughout the reign of feudal China. During the late Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
(1644–1911) and Republic of China period, different styles of comedy began to flourish in big cities and the genres of crosstalk (in Chinese xiangsheng
Xiangsheng
Xiangsheng , sometimes translated as crosstalk, is a traditional Chinese comedic performance in the form of a dialogue between two performers, or, much less often, a solo monologue or, even less frequently, a multi-player talk show. The language, rich in puns and allusions, is delivered in a rapid,...
), comic drama began to emerge. Since 1980s, with the rapid development of media throughout the country, different kinds of comedy began to reach their climax. They became the most favorite forms of entertainment to the populace. Nowadays, the most popular genres of Chinese comedy are summarized as Chinese skit, Chinese acrobatics, Xiangsheng
Xiangsheng
Xiangsheng , sometimes translated as crosstalk, is a traditional Chinese comedic performance in the form of a dialogue between two performers, or, much less often, a solo monologue or, even less frequently, a multi-player talk show. The language, rich in puns and allusions, is delivered in a rapid,...
.
Chinese skit
Chinese skitSketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
is a form of performance which is related to small things in our daily lives. Chinese skit is generally regarded as originating in 1980s. It has inherited advantages and developed from other forms of comedy such as stage play, xiangsheng, errenzhuan
Er Ren Zhuan
Er ren zhuan is a genre of local folk dance and song from Northeast China. It usually consists of two people, a boy and a girl. They sing as well as dance, using folded fans or red square handkerchiefs during the dancing portion. It is enjoyed by a majority of uneducated rural people of Northern...
and comic drama. One skit formulate just one topic, but with a lot of funny action, lively languages. Through promotion of Spring Festival Gala Evening
CCTV New Year's Gala
The CCTV New Year's Gala is a Chinese New Year special produced by China Central Television. Broadcast on the eve of Chinese New Year on its flagship CCTV-1, satellite channels CCTV-4, CCTV-9, CCTV-E, CCTV-F, and CCTV-HD, the broadcast has a yearly viewership of over 700 million viewers, making it...
in 20 years, Chinese skit becomes a very popular artistic form in China. The first skit in China was “eating noodle” (in 1984) which was performed by Chen Peisi.
Zhao Benshan
Today, the most popular Chinese skit performer is Zhao BenshanZhao Benshan
Zhao Benshan is a Chinese skit and sitcom actor, and recently turned TV director. He appears regularly on the CCTV New Year's Gala.-Biography:...
(born October 2, 1957). He is a master of Chinese skit. About 1.4 billion people look forward to his performance in Spring Festival Gala Evening every year.
Crosstalk
Crosstalk is referred to xiangshengXiangsheng
Xiangsheng , sometimes translated as crosstalk, is a traditional Chinese comedic performance in the form of a dialogue between two performers, or, much less often, a solo monologue or, even less frequently, a multi-player talk show. The language, rich in puns and allusions, is delivered in a rapid,...
in Chinese. It is a traditional Chinese comedic performance in different forms of dialogue. Crosstalk is a language art combing four basic techniques: speaking, imitating, teasing, and singing. It can be conducted by one or two performers. It is one of the most popular forms of entertainment because its language is rich in puns as well as allusions. As time passed, new development has been applied to this traditional art in order to keep pace with the times. Cross talk is a most up-to-date performance. Comedians place emphasis on creating new works and injecting new elements into this traditional works making it more relevant the current affairs. Nowadays, the most paramount ones are Shanghai style and Duikou style.
Duikou crosstalk
Today, Duikou crosstalk is the most popular style in China. It is performed by two performers, one performer plays a role of wise man (main performer), and another performer plays a role of fool. The two have a funny conversation.Guo Degang
It stands as an undisputed fact that GuoGuo Degang
- Biography :Guo Degang was born in Tianjin. He began to learn pingshu when he was 8 years old.Guo went to Beijing in 1995 and established Deyun She , a xiangsheng performance theater, in 1996...
(born January 13, 1973) is the most popular crosstalk performing artist. Guo’s success is by no means from luck. Nor did he achieve the fame overnight. Previously, he had been performing in Dazhanian in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
more than 10 years. Therefore he is a veteran in terms of making people laugh. Nowadays, we have a so-called “Guo Degang phenomenon” which is signified by his unique performing style with his rich cultural backgrounds especially of Tianjin and his wide variety skills of playing different instruments and singing different operas such as Peking Opera and Pingju Opera. As his name has become a household name of China, more and more young people begin to enjoy his comic shows.
----
Shanghai style stand-up comedy (solo crosstalk)
The representative of Shanghai style stand-up comedy is “Shanghai Qing Kou” which is created by Zhou LiboZhou Libo
Zhou Libo is a Chinese stand-up comedian. On December 1, 2006, he made his first special performance in Anfu Road, Shanghai. In late 2008, Zhou Libo create his own stand-up comedy called "Shanghai Style Small Talk" which includes A Laughable Talk on the Past 30 Years and A Laughable Talk in Big...
– a most famous stand-up comedian in China nowadays. In terms of “Shanghai Qing Kou”, it originated from different forms of stand-up comedy in the local Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. It is a style of comedy where the performer speaks directly to the audience with the topics associated with the social hot spots. In the performances, the performer will include his/her personal experience and try to promote the pursuit of happy lifestyle.
Zhou Libo
Zhou LiboZhou Libo
Zhou Libo is a Chinese stand-up comedian. On December 1, 2006, he made his first special performance in Anfu Road, Shanghai. In late 2008, Zhou Libo create his own stand-up comedy called "Shanghai Style Small Talk" which includes A Laughable Talk on the Past 30 Years and A Laughable Talk in Big...
(born April 22, 1967) is the founder of “Shanghai Qing Kou” as well as a representative of Shanghai style stand-up comedy. After his shows came out in 2008, he became an overnight sensation. Not only were all the tickets sold out very quickly in every his show but also thousands of people talked about Zhou Libo in that he has already become a public figure in Shanghai. Talking about urban lives, economic and political issues in a mixture of Shanghai dialect
Shanghainese
Shanghainese , or the Shanghai language , is a dialect of Wu Chinese spoken in the city of Shanghai and the surrounding region. It is classified as part of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. Shanghainese, like other Wu dialects, is largely not mutually intelligible with other Chinese varieties...
, Putonghua
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
and some English words, Zhou's performances have been acclaimed by Shanghai citizens, who long for a local star to speak to their culture. .Zhou's genre, which he terms haipai qingkou or "Shanghai-style stand-up comedy", is different from Guo's xiangsheng or Xiaoshenyang's errenzhuan, they are all parts of a flourishing scene of live comic talk shows, a cultural phenomenon that has drawn more and more attention in recent years in China. Zhou Libo’s television works include “Mr. Zhou's Live Show” and “China's Got Talent”.
Chinese Acrobatics
Chinese Acrobatic is one of the oldest performing arts in China; it started from Warring States Period (475 BC-221 BC).
By the time of the Han Dynasty
Han Dynasty
The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
(221 BC-220 AD),
the acrobatic art further developed in content and variety. In the Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
, the number of acrobats increased enormously and their performing skills improved a great deal. Chinese acrobatics can also be called a national art. In the past two decades, some acrobats in China have taken this folk art to a new height. The basics of Chinese Acrobatic are balancing, tumbling, dancing, flexibility, and strength are taught in the first two years, and students spend the next three to five years perfecting specific acts. Then, they will do their first performances when they reach the age of sixteen or seventeen.
External links
- Mu Qian. "Old 'xiangsheng'stirs up New Laughs in Teahouse." China Daily Website - Connecting China Connecting the World. Web. 12 August 2010.
- "赵本山_百度百科." 百度百科――全球最大中文百科全书. Web. 12 August 2010.
- "Zhou Libo - Windows Live." Seven Castles - Windows Live. Web. 12 August 2010.