Gao Xiaopan:The Joker

In a time when xiangsheng （Chinese crosstalk） is increasingly marginalized， many young amateurs who remain enthusiastic about helping the traditional art survive by forming their own crosstalk troupes. In Beijing， one such crosstalk troupe comprised of dozens of artists in their 20s is named Hip-hop Crosstalk Club. The head of the troupe， Gao Xiaopan， has been dubbed the “handsomest crosstalk artist” in China.

Thorny Road to Success

In 1985， Gao was born in Baoding City， Hebei Province. His bond with xiangsheng can be traced back 20 years when he began learning the art at Hebei Children’s Palace. According to Gao， Hong Kong comedian-turned-film director Stephen Chow inspired his dream of becoming a comedian. “In films， Chow is funny and always inspires laughter，” Gao remarks.

In 2003， Gao entered the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts to continue learning crosstalk. At the time， the traditional art had dipped to a historic low， so many classmates gave up crosstalk to develop careers in other professions. Gao， however， chose to stay in Beijing and cling to his crosstalk dream due to his love for the art. “Such love cannot be described with words， but it is imprinted in my heart，” he declares.

The road ahead remained thorny. Born into an ordinary workers’ family， as a stranger in Beijing， he found it difficult to find a place in crosstalk circles that value artists’ backgrounds and seniority. To make a living， he became a part-time shopping guide and decorator. Even so， he never considered giving up on his crosstalk dream.

In 2004， he organized Beijing Youth Crosstalk Troupe at the Chaoyang District Cultural Center when he was only 19 years old. He gained fame quickly. Once， he found himself in a fight with other artists because of a dispute about crosstalk ideas. He paid for his impulsivity： The troupe disbanded after only a year of operation.

On the day the troupe fell apart， Gao was also kicked out of his house because he couldn’t make rent. Late that night， he roamed Beijing’s Fourth Ring Road alone. “I had never been so eager to see the morning sun，” he recalls. “Wandering alone in the street， I saw light penetrating windows of skyscrapers in the city， but nothing shined for me. How pitiful！ New immigrants like me must work hard to earn anything in the city. However， the situation also inspired me to cherish every day.”

Hip-hop Crosstalk

In the spring of 2008， the manager of Guangmingge Teahouse on Beijing’s Gulou West Street was interested in booking a crosstalk troupe to perform on Friday nights. He contacted Gao， who had just gathered several young crosstalk amateurs to form Hiphop Crosstalk Club. “The reason we founded the club was simple，”Gao remarks. “We just longed for the joy of performing crosstalk. Hip-hop Crosstalk Club was like a ‘utopia’ where we could enjoy the fun that crosstalk brings us.”

Hip-hop Crosstalk Club debuted in May 2008. Lacking a professional stage table， they used an office desk covered with a piece of red cloth. Tickets were only 20 yuan per person. Even so， their debut attracted only two spectators. Since so many performers were waiting backstage， the pair of attendees would have felt bad about leaving early.

Over the following five months， the crosstalk club endured difficult times. In the first month， each member， including Gao， earned only 27 yuan. However， the humble earnings didn’t hinder their crosstalk pursuits， and Gao even mocked his lack of income on stage.

As a crosstalk troupe primarily comprised of amateurs born in the 1980s， they injected elements that are nostalgic for young Chinese people， adding music and icons of cartoons and television that dominated their childhood， as well as buzzwords and timely hot topics spreading across the internet. Such a style renewed spectators’ expectations for the traditional art genre， and made Hip-hop Crosstalk Club an increasingly popular group for crosstalk enthu-siasts， especially those from the younger generation.

As their reputation rose via word-of-mouth， increasingly large audiences attended their performances. Eventually， Hip-hop Crosstalk Club’s first crosstalk drama， The Legend of White Snake， was a great success， and the young troupe began to draw attention from mainstream media. On his busiest day， Gao gave interviews to two dozen media outlets. As a result， Hip-hop Crosstalk Club became more and more famous. “We didn’t perform crosstalk to get famous， but got famous for performing crosstalk，” Gao insists.

Where to Go

Problems accompany fame. Despite their popularity， Hiphop Crosstalk Club still maintained cheap ticket prices. However， since the box office directly impacted its revenues， Guangmingge Teahouse wanted to increase prices. In June 2010， the teahouse manager asked Gao to raise the price， but he refused considering it unfair to the audience. Ultimately， the troupe and performance space parted ways.

After the departure， Gao’s expectations about what would happen proved accurate： Some performers， including founding members such as Ma Hongbo and Li Tong， left Hip-hop Crosstalk to join another troupe. At first， Gao felt depressed about seeing his old friends leave. “As time went on， I got over it，” he smiles. “As a Chinese saying goes， man struggles upwards and water flows downwards. With actual financial backing， the other troupe could easily poach artists by offering fat salaries.”

Most members of Hip-hop Crosstalk Club still chose to stay. In August 2010， they found their way back to Guangmingge Teahouse due to their popularity. Afterwards， they toured southern cities including Guangzhou， Shenzhen， and Hong Kong， where they won acclaim from locals. In their heydays， the troupe rotated between five venues and performed more than 20 times a week.

Along with the increasing commercialization of crosstalk， Gao and his Hip-hop Crosstalk Club have been swaying between art and commerce. To survive fierce market competition， the club has also performed on television， and Gao founded an eponymous cultural media company. “As our crosstalk club gained increasing popularity， I became a boss – whether I like it or not – because the club needs commercial management，” he grins. “Frankly， I’d rather just be a crosstalk artist. That endeavor is purer and simpler.”

Nevertheless， reality has forced members of the club to deviate some from their ideals. “As Hip-hop Crosstalk Club became better-known， we abandoned some of the persistence and purity as it became easier to compromise with reality.” Moreover， it is becoming harder for ordinary punchlines to inspire laughter – how to keep today’s spectators giggling keeps every crosstalk artist awake at night. “I was the first to adapt internet jokes into traditional crosstalk， but perhaps today we need to ponder creating more thought-provoking crosstalk，” he adds. “Crosstalk shouldn’t just play for cheap laughs.”

In March 2014， another crisis rocked Hip-hop Crosstalk Club： Three dozen performers left， and it also lost all of its performance venues except Anzhen Theater. Where to go next？ This question persists for every artist. “We’re exploring possibilities related to new media，” Gao reveals. “But， we still need to patiently test every step until we’re confident that we’re moving in the right direction.”

Perhaps today’s Hip-hop Crosstalk Club is far from the “utopia” that Gao once imagined， but crosstalk remains at the heart of the club. “Stay persistent with your dreams because only persistence will bring success.”