Striking chords

In July 2023, the team hosted a performance featuring renowned xiangsheng artist Jiang Kun, who was deeply impressed by the onstage collaboration.

"I had never seen anything like it before," Jiang said. "So many foreigners engaging in light-hearted banter while showcasing genuine cross-talk."

This performance attracted the largest and most diverse audience yet, with attendees from Russia, Ukraine, Japan, and the United States. For Yan, it highlighted how laughter can transcend differences and unite people in joy.

The cultural blending enriches the comedy scene, as elements from different backgrounds come together on stage, and Yan said that they have recently incorporated other cultural themes into their cross-talk performances, such as Japanese manzai and Russian poet Pushkin's lines.

"Some foreign friends come to watch our shows and we include interactive segments to make them feel at home," Yan said.

"They see familiar faces from their own countries, creating an atmosphere that feels like a party. This offers a unique perspective for foreigners studying or working in China, showing them that there's joy to be found here."

As a traditional Chinese performance art, xiangsheng can also weave cultural nuances that deepen foreign performers' understanding of Chinese society.

"My master always tells us that performing cross-talk involves more than just memorizing lines; it requires experiencing the culture firsthand," Nishida said.

He recalled visiting a Tong Ren Tang medicinal store to grasp the essence of traditional Chinese medicine and better understand the terms related to the herbs for cross-talk.

Shyshov recounted a touching moment after a cross-talk competition, when an older member of the audience praised their work.

"The audience told us that what we did was cross-talk in its truest form," Shyshov said.