Illustration: Liu Xiangya/GT

Editor's Note:

There is a general agreement that the integration of drama and crosstalk, a traditional Chinese comedic dialogue between two performers, has led to the emergence of crosstalk drama. However, the term "crosstalk drama" does not have a precise meaning in terms of dramatic structure. The reason for the diversity in form is that there are many possible ways to blend drama and crosstalk. So, what kind of integration best highlights the characteristics and artistic value of this hybrid form? Wang Jinjing, an assistant researcher with the institute of drama at the Chinese National Academy of Arts, explores the answer through a detailed examination of its historical evolution.

Wang Jinjing

Currently, when referring to "crosstalk drama" (xiangsheng ju), the term generally encompasses five types of works: First, a kind of comedian work integrating quyi (folk artforms including ballad singing, storytelling, crosstalk and clapper talks and so on), traditional operas with Western drama emerging in North China's Hebei Province and Tianjin in 1940s. Second, a series of drama works by the performance workshops since 1985, which feature crosstalk as the main content. Third, the large-scale narrative crosstalk drama Ming Chun Qu, created in 1994 by crosstalk performer Jiang Kun, playwright Liang Zuo, and others. Fourth, "crosstalk drama" programs created by crosstalk performers for galas. Fifth, since the 21st century, "crosstalk dramas" produced by some theater troupes such as Deyunshe and Xihabaofupu.

Xixin (Good News), created and performed in 1942, is China's first original play explicitly named a "crosstalk drama." It tells the story of a traitorous landlord who is suppressed, and how a tenant brings news of this event while selling sheepskins in the city to the landlord's son, who is engaged in business there. The entire dialogue was written in double entendre, using overt praise and covert satire, combining the linguistic features of crosstalk with a Molière-style comedic touch.

In this work, the author creatively assigned crosstalk's linguistic style to specific characters within a dramatic plot, a conscious artistic choice. It is fair to say that the fusion of crosstalk, traditional Chinese opera, and Western drama gave rise to this new dramatic form.

In the 1950s and 1960s, crosstalk drama became a popular creative form among urban workers in various industries, and some playwrights also contributed works. Many critics began to pay attention to this innovative form and accurately identified its strengths and weaknesses.

Works from this period established the basic forms for all later crosstalk dramas in the Chinese mainland. These works proportionally combine crosstalk's "speaking" with dramatic "acting," illustrating the gradual evolution of the form. Crosstalk's ability to comment on society, performance flexibility, and direct audience interaction differentiate crosstalk drama from both crosstalk and drama.

According to rough statistics, more than 40 documented works titled "crosstalk drama" were produced between 1942 and the 1980s. From the 1950s to the 1980s, local quyi troupes across China frequently staged crosstalk dramas, which were well received by audiences. Many critical articles praised this emerging art form, but some theorists argued that crosstalk dramas had lost the artistic characteristics of crosstalk and should be classified as dramas.

Among playwrights specializing in drama, few had a deep understanding of crosstalk, and even fewer created crosstalk dramas. During this period, as the number of related works increased, confusion arose in recognizing and theorizing about crosstalk drama, but some crosstalk practitioners and theorists nevertheless offered valuable insights.

In the 1990s, crosstalk drama gradually declined. Except for occasional revivals of old works, local quyi troupes rarely produced new works called a "crosstalk drama." In 1994, Jiang Kun led the creation of Ming Chun Qu, but it was not performed publicly.

In 1999, during CCTV's Lantern Festival Gala, Jiang Kun, Dai Zhicheng, and 11 other crosstalk performers staged a program titled Hui Mou Wang Jiu, though the show's type was not labeled in the credits.

This program used multimedia background visuals and frequent costume changes by the actors to present a series of dramatic scenes, with Jiang and Dai appearing as themselves throughout; it was essentially a condensed version of Ming Chun Qu. In 2003, Ming Chun Qu was officially staged and received unanimous praise from both professionals and audiences.

The play Ming Chun Qu tells the history of crosstalk, but it lacks a profound central theme. It is evident that the strength of crosstalk-based theater lies in using the language and style of traditional crosstalk to explore contemporary social and cultural issues. Creators must engage in deep, far-reaching reflection to provide crosstalk with solid and meaningful thematic foundations, thereby elevating its aesthetic and cultural value.  

In 2010, a stage play titled Liulizhuang Yansu Shenghuo (lit: The Gaudy Lives of Liulizhuang) became a hit in Beijing. This production has been widely regarded as a crosstalk drama. Despite featuring a large cast with fixed roles, every character also serves as a narrator, and each narration can develop into a theatrical experience. This exemplifies a typical structure of crosstalk theater: a layered framework of drama-crosstalk-drama. Such a structure allows for a nuanced expression of thematic meaning while creating an overarching allegory.

Crosstalk drama has long struggled to establish independent artistic value due to four key issues. The commentary-heavy language of crosstalk often clashes with the plot-driven dialogue of drama, and without a proper narrative context, "performing crosstalk" fails to convey deeper meaning. An overemphasis on comedic effect at the expense of moral depth blurs the boundaries between crosstalk drama, satire, and farce. Clunky scene transitions arise from creators' inability to break free from traditional role-playing, which undermines crosstalk's inherent flexibility. Finally, an excessive focus on form over substance creates contradictions, where narration merely sets up performance or performance becomes an illustration of narration, resulting in lively but ultimately shallow works.

In the field of quyi theory, crosstalk is regarded as a comic art form, characterized by humorous and witty language and a comedic style; its main aesthetic value lies in storytelling and moral reasoning. Crosstalk performances are based on actors narrating and performing in their own personas, occasionally adopting first-person or second-person impersonations. Clear narrative dialogue, direct audience interaction, and performance flexibility are the greatest advantages crosstalk brings to drama, enabling the realization of specific aesthetic value.

The author is an assistant researcher with the institute of drama at the Chinese National Academy of Arts