June 14, 2021 • 37 mins
To make friends with other people, it helps if you share the same sense of humour. So it can sometimes be a challenge to make meaningful friendships with people from other cultures, with whom you don't share the same historical background, comic sensibilities, or even speech patterns. This might be a common story for some people in China, but have no fear, because Michelle Qu is here to explain some of the things that make Chinese people laugh. As an improvisational comedian, Michelle also talks us through her own personal journey in discovering this relatively new form of expression in China. For a start, the art of improv has helped her to entertain Chinese audiences. "Yes, and..." it has helped her to communicate, collaborate and place trust in others. "Yes, and..." it has opened up her world to be more accepting, more respectful, and more open to a lifetime of new experiences. The episode also includes a catch-up interview with Sabrina Chen from Season 01 Episode 26. (https://mosaicofchina.com/season-01-episode-26-sabrina-chen). Chapters 00:00 - Trailer & Intro 01:21 - Part 1 18:12 - Part 2 26:50 - Outro 29:22 - Catch-Up Interview Subscribe to the PREMIUM version, see the visuals, and/or follow the full transcript for this episode at https://mosaicofchina.com/season-02-episode-20-michelle-qu.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:02):
[Trailer]MQ: Sometimes I think the likes things a little
bit dirty.OF: Right.
[Intro]OF: Welcome to Mosaic of China, a podcast
about people who are making their mark inChina. I’m your host, Oscar Fuchs.
So let me start today's episode by fillingin some gaps from the conversation you're
(00:23):
about to hear. First of all, we jumped straightinto it without me making a proper introduction.
So my conversation is with the improvisationalcomedian Michelle Qu. Secondly, we never actually
define what improvisational comedy - or 'improv'- actually is. So in case you've never seen
it before, it's a form of live theatre inwhich the plot, characters and dialogue of
(00:46):
a game, scene or story are made up in themoment, usually with the help of suggestions
from the audience. Michelle gives a very simpleexample of this at the beginning of our conversation,
and then we go on to talk about Chinese observationalcomedy in general. And finally, we also didn't
really mention that Michelle isn't a full-timeimprov artist, she actually still has a day
(01:10):
job outside of these pursuits. So yeah, thatmakes her an extremely busy person, so I'm
grateful for the time she took to have ourchat. I hope you enjoy it!
[Part 1]OF: So here's the first thing that I want
to do. I'm going to play you something. AndI want you to listen.
MQ (01:29):
Oh. [Start of Audio Clip]
Sabrina CHEN (01:31):
I think you should interview Michelle Qu. She is doing improvisational
comedy, mainly in Chinese.[End of Audio Clip]
OF (01:41):
So that was your friend Sabrina. MQ
So tell me about your relationship with her. How did you first meet?
MQ (01:50):
Just in the workshop of Zmack, the first international improvisation team in Shanghai,
or maybe China.OF: Wow. So what year was that?
Oh, 2011, I think. OF
first question I ask everyone on this showis “What object did you bring that in some
(02:14):
way explains what you do here in China?MQ: OK, for improvisation comedy, this is
a signature prop.[Bell rings]
When the bell rings, that means the scenestarts.
OF (02:28):
Right. MQ
the ending of a scene or a challenge. So everylearner or actor is afraid of it. Or we are
also expecting it, looking forward to it.“Oh please… When with the bell ring?”
(02:51):
And the audience, they also looking forwardto it. They want to see us die on the stage.
Wow. So it must have some kind of involuntary response in your brain.
MQ (03:05):
Yeah. OF
conversation. So why don't you talk me throughone of the games that maybe you play, and
you use this bell?MQ: OK, there is a game, the name is just
‘Bell’. When I tell you a story, whenthe bell rings, I have to change the last
(03:28):
word of my sentence. For example “Hi Oscar.I went there by metro”.
[Bell rings]“I came here by plane”.
[Bell rings]“I came here by UFO”.
[Bell rings]“I'm not here”. Yeah.
OF (03:43):
Right. Does that work in Chinese, just as easily as in English?
MQ (03:49):
Every programme can be played in Chinese, in Mandarin. It’s not a problem.
OF (03:55):
Right. Well, where did this story start for you, then? You mentioned that you met
Sabrina at a certain class. So tell me aboutthat history.
MQ (04:04):
The first time I watched an improvisational comedy show was in a restaurant. Yeah, because
at that time, actually there were no Chinesepeople who did improvisation. The improvisors
were from the U.S., the actors - or, the fans- they brought this kind of performance to
(04:29):
Shanghai. So they made some programme, theymade some performances, sometimes in a bar,
or in a restaurant. They didn't even havea stage, like professionally, at that time.
I was quite surprised. “Oh wow", you know."It's amazing. How can people give a reaction
so quickly? I cannot do that.”OF: Was it a whole new concept for you? Had
(04:53):
you seen anything similar in China beforethen?
Never. At that time, it really shocked me. I didn't know exactly what improvisation
was. And the next year, they had their firstworkshop, to teach how to do improv comedy.
I remember that moment, I just walked aroundand around and around that building, thinking
(05:18):
“Should I enter or not?” I think at thattime, I was 31 years old. So I said "OK, just
know about it”. I'm always curious aboutthings around me, so I would like to try new
things. “Maybe I won't be good at it. ButI have to know about it”.
OF (05:40):
Nice. And so there you were, you were nervously walking around the poster. And then
you went in. So what was that course like?MQ: That three months was really hard for
me. At the beginning, I was very embarrassed.Actually, I didn't know how to start improv.
For example, you have nothing in front ofyou, and my partner said to me “Hey, look
(06:06):
here, it's a beautiful flower”. So in mymind, my direct reaction to that was “Oh,
it’s not a flower”. And my coach justpointed at me. “Yes. It's a flower”. I
should say “Yes" to my partner.OF: Aha.
MQ (06:20):
Yeah. OF
is this "Yes, and..."MQ: Yeah, to accept and then to push. And
I didn't know how to push the scene. How tothink about it, how to cooperate. How to trust
people. Yeah. One of my teachers - his nameis Curt Mabry, he's the Founder of Zmack - he
(06:49):
taught me a lot about how to act, how to growup. And he talked with me with the biggest
honesty, I think. You know, with international- or American - people, the culture is different.
And sometimes, I cannot catch their patternof humour, the things they are familiar with.
(07:16):
Sometimes I think they like things a littlebit dirty.
OF (07:19):
Right. MQ
president, or something like this…OF: Right.
MQ (07:28):
…Or the difference between Chinese people and the foreign people. I'm OK with everything.
But I think that's not all of humour. So Ithink for Chinese people, we have special
jokes that only we know.OF: This is interesting because it correlates
(07:49):
to one of the episodes that we had in lastseason. There was a Chinese comedian, and
she tried Chinese humour, but she couldn'tmake it work. She really preferred to do her
humour in English. And when she translatedit into Chinese, the audience did not like
it.MQ: Yeah, yeah.
OF (08:06):
So you are more comfortable with the Chinese humour?
MQ (08:10):
Actually, I'm OK with everything. But I would like to discover a lot more from Chinese
humour and Chinese stories. In China, we alsohave so many kinds of humour.
OF (08:24):
Right. MQ
for example, Beijing and Shanghai and 广州[Guǎngzhōu], we make jokes about the differences
from people to people, from different backgrounds.OF: Right.
MQ (08:38):
Yeah. And also, sometimes we make jokes about the difference between people who work
for a Chinese enterprise and people who workfor a foreign enterprise. Foreign enterprise,
they talk in Mandarin, but with some Englishwords mixed in.
OF (08:54):
That’s funny. MQ
And also we have some humour about the way people talk. For example, people from
the north east, if you talk with them, maybefor one week, you will talk like them. And
then Taiwan people… [Adopting a Taiwaneseaccent] “啊，怎么会这样子？ [A,
zěnme huì zhèyàng zi?]”, like this,in a good mood. So it will brainwash you.
(09:20):
Right. MQ
Interesting. This is all, kind of like, language, right? Language play?
MQ (09:27):
Yeah, yeah. OF
of the subject matter. Like you said, withAmerican humour, it's quite rude; it's quite
anti-authority, because you laugh at the government,you laugh at the president. What kind of subjects
do you use when you do Chinese humour?MQ: It’s from our life. Real Chinese people’s
(09:52):
lives. How we communicate with parents. Wetalk about our life in school, how we communicate
between teachers and students, because schoollife is quite different from in foreign schools.
Every time we make a choice, it's a differentway of thinking from in foreign countries.
(10:13):
So that's real life, that makes a real differencein humour. For example, I used it to make
a scene. In that scene, I played a young girl.It was from an audience member's story, the
audience member was a young girl, so I playedher. And I made things bigger. I'm a little
(10:36):
princess, everybody should follow me. If Imake a mistake - one plus one is four - everybody
around me goes “Ah, wonderful! That’sour little princess!” So it's a little bit
bigger, but it's real. So people will laughat this. I remember one of my partners, who
(11:00):
once played a scene. And her mother was persuadingher, “Hey, you have to see this guy. He’s
good. Maybe you can try to be boyfriend andgirlfriend, and maybe go further”. And the
girl answers “Oh mom, come on. I'm 38 yearsold. So please don't introduce me to any guys”.
(11:24):
So people will laugh when she said she's 38years old. Because, for Chinese people to
be introduced to a boyfriend, that's too old.OF: I get it.
Yeah, yeah. OF
with a Western audience, they wouldn't necessarilyknow what you're going through, as a 38-year
old.MQ: Yeah, yeah, yeah. They don't care about
(11:46):
this.OF: Even if I understand the words, I won't
understand why it's funny, right?MQ: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s it.
OF (11:53):
And so tell me about how the audience also started to learn about improvisational
comedy. Because presumably, if you didn'tknow about it, then your audience didn't know
about it.MQ: Yeah, yeah. So every time we start a show,
we have to make sure with the audience, “Sonow, we will all together make a show. This
(12:15):
is improv. So the only way is, you give yourideas to us, we take your idea, and right
now we will give you a scene. So then you’llbelieve that it’s improv”. So after the
show - 90 minutes, or two hours - the audiencewill say “Oh, I trust you. It's true. Everything
(12:36):
is done right now, in the present”. Yeah.OF: Right, because they are the ones who have
given you all the content.MQ: Yeah, yeah. Even sometimes, you know we
have a theatre, but a very small theatre.Only 80 or 100 people can sit inside.
Oh, so they're very, very close. MQ
(12:56):
So sometimes, I just pull them up on the stage,to play with us. And the audience enjoys that.
They’re just like “Ah, I would like toget the next chance to get up on stage, to
play the actress.”OF: Right. So, in that way, in Shanghai, people
are not shy.MQ: Um, it depends. For young people - if
(13:18):
you have a very good warm up - after that,people won't be shy. Because everybody has
paid. They want to enjoy it, they want toparticipate in it. But some - like the old
uncles and aunties - are too quiet.OF: Right. And if the warm-up doesn't work,
(13:40):
you already know, like “Uh-oh, we're introuble today.”
MQ (13:42):
Yeah, yeah, always. I can predict. Before, I have a habit to just have a look at the
audience when they enter the theatre. I cansee “Oh today, the atmosphere, the air,
we will do a good job today.” If, sometimes,I see not a lot of audience in the theatre,
(14:05):
and they’re just playing with their mobilephones, they’re not talking to each other,
then I can predict “Ah, it’s going tobe hard work today.”
OF (14:15):
Right. But then, it must be nice when you start with that audience, and you can
transform them into a good audience.MQ: Yeah. Right now, I have some experience
with how to warm up people. I must give somuch energy to them. Everybody, they can feel
me. Feel my feeling. Yeah.OF: And so tell me about your theatre.
MQ (14:38):
OK, so before, I talked about Zmack, in restaurants or in bars. After that, I had
my own team. And we played in an art space,they gave us the chance to play there, like
once a month. And what surprised me is thatthe art space, they had a very good audience
(15:01):
resource. People would like to pay for differentkinds of shows, different kinds of exhibitions.
So at that time, we have some audience, andthey just followed us from that time, for
so many years. And after that, there was anothergroup in Shanghai, they were professional.
So they invited us to join them, so we canshare our resources. So we agreed to join
(15:28):
them. And we have a bigger audience. Rightnow is we still work together, ‘The Improviser
Alliance’.OF: And how do you say that in Chinese?
‘即兴者联盟 [Jíxìngzhě Liánméng]’. OF
Yeah, yeah, yeah, ‘improvisation’, yeah.
OF (15:42):
OK, I didn't know that. Great. So have you seen improvisation pop up in different
cities in China?MQ: Yeah, that's what we are so pleased to
see. Before, it was only 广州 [Guǎngzhōu],深圳 [Shēnzhèn], Shanghai, Beijing, that
we had some improvisers. But right now wecan see in every province - the biggest cities
(16:06):
- in each one, they have improvisers. Andalso besides improvisation shows, there is
more stand-up comedy, 漫才 [manzai] comedy,and sketch comedy. It’s getting better and
better.OF: That's great. And what do you think improvisation
has done for you? How has it changed yourlife, outside of the performance?
MQ (16:30):
OK. First with my family, I think I accept them more. We still say “Yes" to each other.
And I try my best to persuade them to trynew things.
OF (16:44):
How lovely. And do you follow that same recipe yourself?
MQ (16:50):
Yeah. Before, my travelling plan was to the countries that I'm really familiar with.
But right now, I choose to try. I choose totake the biggest risk. Jordan, Morocco, Azerbaijan,
and Iran. Yeah. I also do a percussion musicband. A friend played African drums. So I
(17:17):
just came to his studio to play with them.I found out “Oh, so many people, dance,
sing, and play together. It’s noisy, it’sinteresting”. So I joined the events of
African drums. And we started to know somethingabout South American music. “Hey, samba!”
(17:41):
So “OK, why not?” So went to an undergroundstudio, and we tried to play samba. I think
the band is getting better and better. Ourname is ‘Groove Papa’.
OF (17:55):
‘Groove Papa’. MQ
OK, listen out for Groove Papa. Thank you so much, Michelle.
MQ (18:01):
Thank you, Oscar. I don't know, I never thought that I could share with you so many
things.OF: Yeah! What we'll do now is, we’ll go
on to Part 2.MQ: OK.
[Part 2]OF: Question 1, what is your favourite China-related
fact?MQ: I think the most impressive facts about
China is that China is extremely colourful.And extremely big. For example, 广东 [Guǎngdōng]
(18:29):
Province, and Mongolia Province…OF: Inner Mongolia, right?
Yeah. Inner Mongolia. So one is very cold, like outside The Great Wall. But in 广东
[Guǎngdōng] Province, life there is quitedifferent.
OF (18:42):
Very good. MQ
Question 2. Do you have a favourite word or phrase in Chinese?
MQ (18:48):
Yeah, a very old one. I don't know if you ever heard about that, it’s from Confucius.
OF (18:55):
OK. MQ
wùshī yúrén]. Don't impose the thing youdon't want onto others.
Oh right. MQ
also, don't impose the thing you love ontoothers”. I think at least we should give
respect to each other, to give enough spaceto everybody.
(19:18):
Agreed. MQ
What is your favourite destination within China?
MQ (19:24):
Last year I went to 泉州 [Quánzhōu] in 福建 [Fújiàn] Province.
OF (19:27):
Right. MQ
I know about it because of the.. They had the first Muslims in China.
MQ (19:34):
Ah yeah, yeah. And when I was there, I found out that it was not only Muslim in that
city, but also some other religions. A veryold religion, how to say… people paid respect
to fire.OF: Ah, Zoroastrianism.
Yeah, yeah. OF
(19:55):
So each kind of culture, each kind of religion, they have their own space. Perfectly.
With harmony, in that city. It’s very interesting.I really love this kind of atmosphere.
OF (20:09):
Yeah, that's great. I really want to go now.
MQ (20:14):
Yeah. OF
the most, and what would you miss the least?MQ: Oh, if I left China, of course I would
miss my theatre, and my partners.OF: Right.
Yeah. OF
a big part of your life now. Like, how bigdo you think this is part of your life?
Oh, almost maybe 70% I think. OF
(20:40):
job. Do you think that you use any of theseskills in your job, in your working life?
Yeah sure. It’s the way to communicate with people. Five years ago, I think I wouldn’t
have this kind of energy.OF: And what about the thing that you will
miss the least, if you left China. Is thereanything?
Yeah, sure. When you get off a metro, or when you get off an elevator, somebody
(21:06):
just stands in the middle of the gate. You'reface to face.
OF (21:11):
Yeah, it drives me crazy. Especially in the lift. Like, how am I going to come out?
MQ (21:21):
Yeah. You want to kiss me? OF
do that?MQ: Yeah, I really hate that, you know.
OF (21:29):
Right. Is there anything that still surprises you about modern life in China?
MQ (21:34):
You can borrow an umbrella in the metro station.
OF (21:38):
Oh, how does that work? So you scan it, you take the umbrella…
MQ (21:42):
Yeah. You take the umbrella, and in 24 hours you can give it back in any metro station.
OF (21:50):
Nice. I haven't seen that actually. Because for me, sometimes I just walk past and I don't
see.MQ: OK, I think every metro station has a…
…A machine, right? MQ
Very good. What is your favourite place to go out, to eat or to drink or just hang
out?MQ: Actually, I don’t have so much time
(22:13):
to hang out. But a friend of mine took meto do a city walk around the 豫 [Yù] Garden
and the 苏州 [Sūzhōu] River. So we checkedout the old houses, and the very old small
streets around that place. And I thought “Oh,that's the feeling of time passing by.”
(22:35):
You can see old people reading newspapersin their old house. You can “Knock, knock,”
ask for an old uncle to give you a haircut.And you can buy fried chicken and you have
it just on the riverside. It’s just thefeeling of happiness.
(22:55):
Yeah. There aren't many places like that in Shanghai.
MQ (22:59):
Yeah, yeah. OF
purchase?MQ: Oh, um, last week, I was going to prepare
a gift for my friend. And I have another friend,she’s a painter. And she paints pets, your
(23:20):
cat, your dog. And I would like to give agift, like a painting, to my friend, from
this painter friend. And she asked me “Oh,OK, please show me your cat or your dog's
picture”. I said “No”. “Ah? No cat.No dog. So what what should I paint?” “My
friend! Paint my friend as a cat. OK? A blackcat”. And I just sent some pictures of my
(23:46):
friend, and she painted it out! It's a cat,but it's my friend.
OF (23:50):
Is it good? MQ
OK, go on, show me now. Oh, it's nice. MQ
the eyes. It’s exactly my friend's eyes.When I gave this painting to my friend, he
was like “It’s me!”OF: Oh, wow.
MQ (24:08):
And tears here. OF
WeChat sticker?MQ: I made it by myself.
OF (24:18):
Very good. So you did the makeup. MQ
And what does it say? MQ
bǎimèishēng] (24:25):
That means “With this face, she turned back, with so much charm”.
OF (24:31):
Lovely. MQ
What’s your go to song to sing at KTV? MQ
[Wǒ de xīnlǐ zhǐyǒu nǐ méiyǒu tā]’,I only have you in my heart, there's no space
for anyone else.OF: Who sings that?
MQ (24:47):
黄小琥 [Huáng Xiǎohǔ], a singer from Taiwan.
OF (24:51):
OK. MQ
still in tone, I feel comfortable about it.OF: Yeah.
MQ (24:59):
And it’s a little bit jazz style, and a little bit drama style. And also 1980s disco.
OF (25:05):
Oh that’s ‘Peak Michelle’. Alright, I will…
MQ (25:09):
“我的心裡只有你沒有他，你要相信我的情意並不假 [Wǒ de xīnlǐ zhǐyǒu nǐ méiyǒu tā,
nǐ yào xiāngxìn wǒ de qíngyì bìngbù jiǎ]”
OF (25:20):
Oh. That's a free performance. And finally, what other China-related media or sources
of information do you use?MQ: Oh, my favourite is 哔哩哔哩 [Bìlībìlī].
I have never used it. What is 哔哩哔哩 [Bìlībìlī].
MQ (25:36):
Oh, you should use it. It's really a lovely platform. It's a video platform
movies, and just short videos made by ‘APP主[zhǔ]’, app owners. They make videos by
themselves. So people will share their ownunderstanding.
OF (25:57):
Right. MQ
Thank you, Michelle. MQ
Oh, I really enjoyed that. MQ
And tell me then, so out of all of the people who you know in China, who would you
recommend that I interview in the next seasonof Mosaic of China?
MQ (26:17):
I will introduce you to 大蒋 [Dàjiǎng]. He's a very funny boy. And he’s very warm-hearted.
He’s a documentary director, with - howto say - patients with Tourette’s.
OF (26:32):
Tourette’s. MQ
Right. MQ
understand more about these patients. Yeah.OF: I’m really interested in that.
MQ (26:44):
You will be. OF
Thank you, Oscar.
[Outro]OF: Well I hope that today's episode helped
to explain why your Chinese friends don'tlaugh at any of your jokes. Michelle actually
gave quite a few more examples of jokes thatwork in Chinese. So to hear the full version
(27:05):
of the episode, please follow the instructionson https://mosaicofchina.com to subscribe
to the PREMIUM version of the show on Patreonor 爱发电 [Àifādiàn]. Here are a few
clips of what you missed.
[Clip 1]MQ: “Corona! Corona!”. On the street,
everybody called us ‘Corona". I just thinkit’s that people weren’t sure about the
situation.[Clip 2]
(27:25):
“吃饭那个，今天挺热的，你得买个西瓜啊。[Chīfàn nàgè, jīntiān tǐngrède, nǐděi mǎi
gè xīguā a.]” Understand?OF: I understand. And I’m a bit scared.
[Clip 3]OF: But how does it work, then, with the Culture
Bureau? Because I thought that you need tohave permission about what the content will
be.MQ: Right now, it’s a little bit tough.
(27:46):
[Clip 4]"床前明月光，疑是地上霜 [Chuángqián
míngyuèguāng, Yíshì dìshàngshuāng]".The audience will laugh, because that's not
at the level of a highly-educated person.[End of Audio Clips]
One correction I think I should make is thatI don't think it's accurate to say that the
Muslims in 泉州 [Quánzhōu] were the firstMuslims in China. And I'm not even sure if
I was right in guessing about Zoroastrianismeither. I hope that at some point I'll have
(28:10):
a guest on this show from 泉州 [Quánzhōu]who can put me right. In any case I've posted
a couple of photos of the city on social media,so please check out the images on Instagram
or Facebook, or add me on my WeChat ID (28:20):
mosaicofchina, and I'll add you to the listeners group there.
From today's episode you'll also see photosof Michelle and her object, the dreaded bell;
her favourite WeChat sticker, which we maynot have clearly mentioned was of a radish
wearing make-up; there are a bunch of photosof Michelle performing with the Improviser
(28:41):
Alliance, as well as drumming with GroovePapa; and lots more besides.
Mosaic of China is me, Oscar Fuchs, with artworkby Denny Newell. Stick around until the end,
where you'll hear my catch-up with the danceprogramme curator Sabrina Chen from Season
01 Episode 26, whose voice you heard at thebeginning of today's episode. I'll be travelling
(29:03):
for a few days next week, but I'm going totry and press all the right buttons so that
the next episode gets released on time whileI'm away. So hopefully see you then.
[Catch-Up Interview]OF: Hello, Sabrina.
SC (29:23):
Hello, Oscar. Nice to see you again. OF
haircuts each time I see you.SC: Well, I didn't wash my hair this morning.
Sorry.OF: It looks good. I'm going to start with
a re-introduction, just in case people didn'tlisten to your original episode.
(29:44):
OK. Yeah. OF
the Theatres at the Shanghai InternationalDance Center.
Yes. OF
you talked me through the appreciation ofdance. And since then I've been to a few shows,
and I feel like I'm now an amateur fan. Istill don't know what I'm looking at, but
(30:05):
I enjoy it.SC: You have even left to your voice in our
theatre.OF: Well… So, explain what happened.
You made the announcement. OF
So every time we start a show, we will have to listen to your voice first. To make
sure we don't eat. We don't take photos duringthe show.
OF (30:25):
But I thought what I recorded was just the special announcement for COVID, right?
So it included things about all the measuresthat you had put into place.
SC (30:35):
Yeah, but it's still within the post-pandemic period. So we still keep using that thing.
[Clip of the announcement]OF: “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the
Grand Theatre of the Shanghai internationalDance Center”.
[End of Clip]OF: I hope it's doing a good job.
Yeah, I really enjoy it. OF
(30:57):
voiceover artist. Sadly, no-one else has come.SC: Well, you should invite your friends to
come to the theatre to listen to it, maybesome more people will invite you to do more
announcements.OF: Yes. So, you are in charge of the programme
at the dance theatres. And a lot of your jobwas about going around the world, and looking
(31:19):
at dance companies, and inviting them to Shanghai.SC: Yeah.
OF (31:22):
So that's not quite what you're doing these days.
SC (31:26):
No, because till now, we still cannot invite any international groups to come into
China. So actually, we had lots of performancesperformed by Chinese local artists. We haven't
actually cut the connection with the internationalworld, because we did some programmes, and
(31:47):
exchange programmes through the internet,and discussions on Zoom. We recently had a
collaboration with Scottish Dance Theatreto make a short film. Yeah, things like that.
OF (32:00):
Yes. And this is what I expected you to say. Because a lot of artists who are normally
working in theatres, they've had to adaptin this last year/2 years, right?
SC (32:11):
Yeah, I think it's quite difficult for all types of artists around the world. For
the Chinese artists, they're quite lucky,because China is quite big enough, and we
recovered very soon, which gives more opportunitiesto local artists in the past year. So it's
actually a good opportunity for Chinese artists.OF: And I guess that would have at least been
(32:35):
one positive, because maybe you would havediscovered some local dance companies in China
that otherwise you may have overlooked, right?SC: Yes. Yeah, exactly. Especially, we gave
the opportunity to young artists, who maybenever had the opportunity to go on stage before.
But we discovered them in the last year. Becauseit was very difficult for them. We even sponsored
(33:00):
them, to support them with real money.OF: Yeah.
Yeah. To help them to make some new programmes, and bring them to the theatre.
OF (33:09):
Wow, so actually, you've almost commissioned this work.
SC (33:13):
Yeah, we commissioned, we co-produced. Lots of interaction with them. I think every
theatre in China in the past year has to carveour own way to make some money. But what we
did was, we opened our online shop with thelive host. You know, it's very popular.
OF (33:33):
Oh god, yes. SC
sells goods through the internet, throughTaobao. We did so. And the hosts, you know,
guess who are the hosts?OF: Go on…
SC (33:47):
The ushers. OF
now?SC: Yes, you know, because during those months,
there is no job for the ushers.OF: Yes.
No performances. But we don't want them to just be around with nothing to do. So we
gave them this new opportunity. “Go on Taobaoevery night to see how other hosts sell goods.
(34:12):
So your responsibility is to come back tothe theatre, to be in front of the camera,
to sell our theatre goods and souvenirs”.And so actually it was a great experience,
because we also discovered the other characterof our ushers.
OF (34:28):
Yes. SC
Yes. SC
was to be polite, and open the door, and checkthe tickets, right? But actually they are
talented, they can sing, they can play music.So in the broadcast room, while selling the
(34:50):
goods, they sometimes will play guitar, andsing a song to our audience.
Amazing. SC
the goods, because it's not that much moneythat we can make. It's a way to spread the
culture of theatre to more people on the internet.And since then, we now have a tradition. Every
(35:15):
programme, we will sell it on Taobao.OF: Yeah right, through these ushers. What
about the future, then? Like, can you alreadystart to plan for some overseas companies
to come to China, or it's still too early?SC: We have always been planning for the international
companies, but it gets cancelled all the time.So it gets cancelled, then we re-plan, then
(35:40):
cancelled again, then re-plan. So we haveto keep working on it.
Yeah. Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, Plan D. SC
Can you imagine what date they will finally be able to come?
SC (35:51):
I think we’ll try to make it happen at the end of this year. Because the Shanghai
International Arts Festival will happen inOctober-November. Because it was sadly cancelled
last year.OF: Of course.
And this year, I think they will manage to at least do something.
OF (36:08):
Yes. Well, I will be releasing this catch-up when we release the episode with Michelle
Qu.SC: Yeah.
So Michelle Qu was the one who you recommended for Season 02.
SC (36:19):
Yes. OF
Yes, of course. We always go out for dinner. Yeah. And she's very positive, every time
I see her. I don't know where she gets allthese jokes from. So she's really a talent.
OF (36:37):
Wow. And let's keep in touch, Sabrina. I'm really happy that you were in Season 01.
SC (36:43):
Yeah. OF
still be there. So please keep in touch.SC: No problem.
[Trailer]MQ: Sometimes I think the likes things a little
bit dirty.OF: Right.
[Intro]OF: Welcome to Mosaic of China, a podcast
about people who are making their mark inChina. I’m your host, Oscar Fuchs.
So let me start today's episode by fillingin some gaps from the conversation you're
(00:23):
about to hear. First of all, we jumped straightinto it without me making a proper introduction.
So my conversation is with the improvisationalcomedian Michelle Qu. Secondly, we never actually
define what improvisational comedy - or 'improv'- actually is. So in case you've never seen
it before, it's a form of live theatre inwhich the plot, characters and dialogue of
(00:46):
a game, scene or story are made up in themoment, usually with the help of suggestions
from the audience. Michelle gives a very simpleexample of this at the beginning of our conversation,
and then we go on to talk about Chinese observationalcomedy in general. And finally, we also didn't
really mention that Michelle isn't a full-timeimprov artist, she actually still has a day
(01:10):
job outside of these pursuits. So yeah, thatmakes her an extremely busy person, so I'm
grateful for the time she took to have ourchat. I hope you enjoy it!
[Part 1]OF: So here's the first thing that I want
to do. I'm going to play you something. AndI want you to listen.
MQ (01:29):
Oh. [Start of Audio Clip]
Sabrina CHEN (01:31):
I think you should interview Michelle Qu. She is doing improvisational
comedy, mainly in Chinese.[End of Audio Clip]
OF (01:41):
So that was your friend Sabrina. MQ
So tell me about your relationship with her. How did you first meet?
MQ (01:50):
Just in the workshop of Zmack, the first international improvisation team in Shanghai,
or maybe China.OF: Wow. So what year was that?
Oh, 2011, I think. OF
first question I ask everyone on this showis “What object did you bring that in some
(02:14):
way explains what you do here in China?MQ: OK, for improvisation comedy, this is
a signature prop.[Bell rings]
When the bell rings, that means the scenestarts.
OF (02:28):
Right. MQ
the ending of a scene or a challenge. So everylearner or actor is afraid of it. Or we are
also expecting it, looking forward to it.“Oh please… When with the bell ring?”
(02:51):
And the audience, they also looking forwardto it. They want to see us die on the stage.
Wow. So it must have some kind of involuntary response in your brain.
MQ (03:05):
Yeah. OF
conversation. So why don't you talk me throughone of the games that maybe you play, and
you use this bell?MQ: OK, there is a game, the name is just
‘Bell’. When I tell you a story, whenthe bell rings, I have to change the last
(03:28):
word of my sentence. For example “Hi Oscar.I went there by metro”.
[Bell rings]“I came here by plane”.
[Bell rings]“I came here by UFO”.
[Bell rings]“I'm not here”. Yeah.
OF (03:43):
Right. Does that work in Chinese, just as easily as in English?
MQ (03:49):
Every programme can be played in Chinese, in Mandarin. It’s not a problem.
OF (03:55):
Right. Well, where did this story start for you, then? You mentioned that you met
Sabrina at a certain class. So tell me aboutthat history.
MQ (04:04):
The first time I watched an improvisational comedy show was in a restaurant. Yeah, because
at that time, actually there were no Chinesepeople who did improvisation. The improvisors
were from the U.S., the actors - or, the fans- they brought this kind of performance to
(04:29):
Shanghai. So they made some programme, theymade some performances, sometimes in a bar,
or in a restaurant. They didn't even havea stage, like professionally, at that time.
I was quite surprised. “Oh wow", you know."It's amazing. How can people give a reaction
so quickly? I cannot do that.”OF: Was it a whole new concept for you? Had
(04:53):
you seen anything similar in China beforethen?
Never. At that time, it really shocked me. I didn't know exactly what improvisation
was. And the next year, they had their firstworkshop, to teach how to do improv comedy.
I remember that moment, I just walked aroundand around and around that building, thinking
(05:18):
“Should I enter or not?” I think at thattime, I was 31 years old. So I said "OK, just
know about it”. I'm always curious aboutthings around me, so I would like to try new
things. “Maybe I won't be good at it. ButI have to know about it”.
OF (05:40):
Nice. And so there you were, you were nervously walking around the poster. And then
you went in. So what was that course like?MQ: That three months was really hard for
me. At the beginning, I was very embarrassed.Actually, I didn't know how to start improv.
For example, you have nothing in front ofyou, and my partner said to me “Hey, look
(06:06):
here, it's a beautiful flower”. So in mymind, my direct reaction to that was “Oh,
it’s not a flower”. And my coach justpointed at me. “Yes. It's a flower”. I
should say “Yes" to my partner.OF: Aha.
MQ (06:20):
Yeah. OF
is this "Yes, and..."MQ: Yeah, to accept and then to push. And
I didn't know how to push the scene. How tothink about it, how to cooperate. How to trust
people. Yeah. One of my teachers - his nameis Curt Mabry, he's the Founder of Zmack - he
(06:49):
taught me a lot about how to act, how to growup. And he talked with me with the biggest
honesty, I think. You know, with international- or American - people, the culture is different.
And sometimes, I cannot catch their patternof humour, the things they are familiar with.
(07:16):
Sometimes I think they like things a littlebit dirty.
OF (07:19):
Right. MQ
president, or something like this…OF: Right.
MQ (07:28):
…Or the difference between Chinese people and the foreign people. I'm OK with everything.
But I think that's not all of humour. So Ithink for Chinese people, we have special
jokes that only we know.OF: This is interesting because it correlates
(07:49):
to one of the episodes that we had in lastseason. There was a Chinese comedian, and
she tried Chinese humour, but she couldn'tmake it work. She really preferred to do her
humour in English. And when she translatedit into Chinese, the audience did not like
it.MQ: Yeah, yeah.
OF (08:06):
So you are more comfortable with the Chinese humour?
MQ (08:10):
Actually, I'm OK with everything. But I would like to discover a lot more from Chinese
humour and Chinese stories. In China, we alsohave so many kinds of humour.
OF (08:24):
Right. MQ
for example, Beijing and Shanghai and 广州[Guǎngzhōu], we make jokes about the differences
from people to people, from different backgrounds.OF: Right.
MQ (08:38):
Yeah. And also, sometimes we make jokes about the difference between people who work
for a Chinese enterprise and people who workfor a foreign enterprise. Foreign enterprise,
they talk in Mandarin, but with some Englishwords mixed in.
OF (08:54):
That’s funny. MQ
And also we have some humour about the way people talk. For example, people from
the north east, if you talk with them, maybefor one week, you will talk like them. And
then Taiwan people… [Adopting a Taiwaneseaccent] “啊，怎么会这样子？ [A,
zěnme huì zhèyàng zi?]”, like this,in a good mood. So it will brainwash you.
(09:20):
Right. MQ
Interesting. This is all, kind of like, language, right? Language play?
MQ (09:27):
Yeah, yeah. OF
of the subject matter. Like you said, withAmerican humour, it's quite rude; it's quite
anti-authority, because you laugh at the government,you laugh at the president. What kind of subjects
do you use when you do Chinese humour?MQ: It’s from our life. Real Chinese people’s
(09:52):
lives. How we communicate with parents. Wetalk about our life in school, how we communicate
between teachers and students, because schoollife is quite different from in foreign schools.
Every time we make a choice, it's a differentway of thinking from in foreign countries.
(10:13):
So that's real life, that makes a real differencein humour. For example, I used it to make
a scene. In that scene, I played a young girl.It was from an audience member's story, the
audience member was a young girl, so I playedher. And I made things bigger. I'm a little
(10:36):
princess, everybody should follow me. If Imake a mistake - one plus one is four - everybody
around me goes “Ah, wonderful! That’sour little princess!” So it's a little bit
bigger, but it's real. So people will laughat this. I remember one of my partners, who
(11:00):
once played a scene. And her mother was persuadingher, “Hey, you have to see this guy. He’s
good. Maybe you can try to be boyfriend andgirlfriend, and maybe go further”. And the
girl answers “Oh mom, come on. I'm 38 yearsold. So please don't introduce me to any guys”.
(11:24):
So people will laugh when she said she's 38years old. Because, for Chinese people to
be introduced to a boyfriend, that's too old.OF: I get it.
Yeah, yeah. OF
with a Western audience, they wouldn't necessarilyknow what you're going through, as a 38-year
old.MQ: Yeah, yeah, yeah. They don't care about
(11:46):
this.OF: Even if I understand the words, I won't
understand why it's funny, right?MQ: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s it.
OF (11:53):
And so tell me about how the audience also started to learn about improvisational
comedy. Because presumably, if you didn'tknow about it, then your audience didn't know
about it.MQ: Yeah, yeah. So every time we start a show,
we have to make sure with the audience, “Sonow, we will all together make a show. This
(12:15):
is improv. So the only way is, you give yourideas to us, we take your idea, and right
now we will give you a scene. So then you’llbelieve that it’s improv”. So after the
show - 90 minutes, or two hours - the audiencewill say “Oh, I trust you. It's true. Everything
(12:36):
is done right now, in the present”. Yeah.OF: Right, because they are the ones who have
given you all the content.MQ: Yeah, yeah. Even sometimes, you know we
have a theatre, but a very small theatre.Only 80 or 100 people can sit inside.
Oh, so they're very, very close. MQ
(12:56):
So sometimes, I just pull them up on the stage,to play with us. And the audience enjoys that.
They’re just like “Ah, I would like toget the next chance to get up on stage, to
play the actress.”OF: Right. So, in that way, in Shanghai, people
are not shy.MQ: Um, it depends. For young people - if
(13:18):
you have a very good warm up - after that,people won't be shy. Because everybody has
paid. They want to enjoy it, they want toparticipate in it. But some - like the old
uncles and aunties - are too quiet.OF: Right. And if the warm-up doesn't work,
(13:40):
you already know, like “Uh-oh, we're introuble today.”
MQ (13:42):
Yeah, yeah, always. I can predict. Before, I have a habit to just have a look at the
audience when they enter the theatre. I cansee “Oh today, the atmosphere, the air,
we will do a good job today.” If, sometimes,I see not a lot of audience in the theatre,
(14:05):
and they’re just playing with their mobilephones, they’re not talking to each other,
then I can predict “Ah, it’s going tobe hard work today.”
OF (14:15):
Right. But then, it must be nice when you start with that audience, and you can
transform them into a good audience.MQ: Yeah. Right now, I have some experience
with how to warm up people. I must give somuch energy to them. Everybody, they can feel
me. Feel my feeling. Yeah.OF: And so tell me about your theatre.
MQ (14:38):
OK, so before, I talked about Zmack, in restaurants or in bars. After that, I had
my own team. And we played in an art space,they gave us the chance to play there, like
once a month. And what surprised me is thatthe art space, they had a very good audience
(15:01):
resource. People would like to pay for differentkinds of shows, different kinds of exhibitions.
So at that time, we have some audience, andthey just followed us from that time, for
so many years. And after that, there was anothergroup in Shanghai, they were professional.
So they invited us to join them, so we canshare our resources. So we agreed to join
(15:28):
them. And we have a bigger audience. Rightnow is we still work together, ‘The Improviser
Alliance’.OF: And how do you say that in Chinese?
‘即兴者联盟 [Jíxìngzhě Liánméng]’. OF
Yeah, yeah, yeah, ‘improvisation’, yeah.
OF (15:42):
OK, I didn't know that. Great. So have you seen improvisation pop up in different
cities in China?MQ: Yeah, that's what we are so pleased to
see. Before, it was only 广州 [Guǎngzhōu],深圳 [Shēnzhèn], Shanghai, Beijing, that
we had some improvisers. But right now wecan see in every province - the biggest cities
(16:06):
- in each one, they have improvisers. Andalso besides improvisation shows, there is
more stand-up comedy, 漫才 [manzai] comedy,and sketch comedy. It’s getting better and
better.OF: That's great. And what do you think improvisation
has done for you? How has it changed yourlife, outside of the performance?
MQ (16:30):
OK. First with my family, I think I accept them more. We still say “Yes" to each other.
And I try my best to persuade them to trynew things.
OF (16:44):
How lovely. And do you follow that same recipe yourself?
MQ (16:50):
Yeah. Before, my travelling plan was to the countries that I'm really familiar with.
But right now, I choose to try. I choose totake the biggest risk. Jordan, Morocco, Azerbaijan,
and Iran. Yeah. I also do a percussion musicband. A friend played African drums. So I
(17:17):
just came to his studio to play with them.I found out “Oh, so many people, dance,
sing, and play together. It’s noisy, it’sinteresting”. So I joined the events of
African drums. And we started to know somethingabout South American music. “Hey, samba!”
(17:41):
So “OK, why not?” So went to an undergroundstudio, and we tried to play samba. I think
the band is getting better and better. Ourname is ‘Groove Papa’.
OF (17:55):
‘Groove Papa’. MQ
OK, listen out for Groove Papa. Thank you so much, Michelle.
MQ (18:01):
Thank you, Oscar. I don't know, I never thought that I could share with you so many
things.OF: Yeah! What we'll do now is, we’ll go
on to Part 2.MQ: OK.
[Part 2]OF: Question 1, what is your favourite China-related
fact?MQ: I think the most impressive facts about
China is that China is extremely colourful.And extremely big. For example, 广东 [Guǎngdōng]
(18:29):
Province, and Mongolia Province…OF: Inner Mongolia, right?
Yeah. Inner Mongolia. So one is very cold, like outside The Great Wall. But in 广东
[Guǎngdōng] Province, life there is quitedifferent.
OF (18:42):
Very good. MQ
Question 2. Do you have a favourite word or phrase in Chinese?
MQ (18:48):
Yeah, a very old one. I don't know if you ever heard about that, it’s from Confucius.
OF (18:55):
OK. MQ
wùshī yúrén]. Don't impose the thing youdon't want onto others.
Oh right. MQ
also, don't impose the thing you love ontoothers”. I think at least we should give
respect to each other, to give enough spaceto everybody.
(19:18):
Agreed. MQ
What is your favourite destination within China?
MQ (19:24):
Last year I went to 泉州 [Quánzhōu] in 福建 [Fújiàn] Province.
OF (19:27):
Right. MQ
I know about it because of the.. They had the first Muslims in China.
MQ (19:34):
Ah yeah, yeah. And when I was there, I found out that it was not only Muslim in that
city, but also some other religions. A veryold religion, how to say… people paid respect
to fire.OF: Ah, Zoroastrianism.
Yeah, yeah. OF
(19:55):
So each kind of culture, each kind of religion, they have their own space. Perfectly.
With harmony, in that city. It’s very interesting.I really love this kind of atmosphere.
OF (20:09):
Yeah, that's great. I really want to go now.
MQ (20:14):
Yeah. OF
the most, and what would you miss the least?MQ: Oh, if I left China, of course I would
miss my theatre, and my partners.OF: Right.
Yeah. OF
a big part of your life now. Like, how bigdo you think this is part of your life?
Oh, almost maybe 70% I think. OF
(20:40):
job. Do you think that you use any of theseskills in your job, in your working life?
Yeah sure. It’s the way to communicate with people. Five years ago, I think I wouldn’t
have this kind of energy.OF: And what about the thing that you will
miss the least, if you left China. Is thereanything?
Yeah, sure. When you get off a metro, or when you get off an elevator, somebody
(21:06):
just stands in the middle of the gate. You'reface to face.
OF (21:11):
Yeah, it drives me crazy. Especially in the lift. Like, how am I going to come out?
MQ (21:21):
Yeah. You want to kiss me? OF
do that?MQ: Yeah, I really hate that, you know.
OF (21:29):
Right. Is there anything that still surprises you about modern life in China?
MQ (21:34):
You can borrow an umbrella in the metro station.
OF (21:38):
Oh, how does that work? So you scan it, you take the umbrella…
MQ (21:42):
Yeah. You take the umbrella, and in 24 hours you can give it back in any metro station.
OF (21:50):
Nice. I haven't seen that actually. Because for me, sometimes I just walk past and I don't
see.MQ: OK, I think every metro station has a…
…A machine, right? MQ
Very good. What is your favourite place to go out, to eat or to drink or just hang
out?MQ: Actually, I don’t have so much time
(22:13):
to hang out. But a friend of mine took meto do a city walk around the 豫 [Yù] Garden
and the 苏州 [Sūzhōu] River. So we checkedout the old houses, and the very old small
streets around that place. And I thought “Oh,that's the feeling of time passing by.”
(22:35):
You can see old people reading newspapersin their old house. You can “Knock, knock,”
ask for an old uncle to give you a haircut.And you can buy fried chicken and you have
it just on the riverside. It’s just thefeeling of happiness.
(22:55):
Yeah. There aren't many places like that in Shanghai.
MQ (22:59):
Yeah, yeah. OF
purchase?MQ: Oh, um, last week, I was going to prepare
a gift for my friend. And I have another friend,she’s a painter. And she paints pets, your
(23:20):
cat, your dog. And I would like to give agift, like a painting, to my friend, from
this painter friend. And she asked me “Oh,OK, please show me your cat or your dog's
picture”. I said “No”. “Ah? No cat.No dog. So what what should I paint?” “My
friend! Paint my friend as a cat. OK? A blackcat”. And I just sent some pictures of my
(23:46):
friend, and she painted it out! It's a cat,but it's my friend.
OF (23:50):
Is it good? MQ
OK, go on, show me now. Oh, it's nice. MQ
the eyes. It’s exactly my friend's eyes.When I gave this painting to my friend, he
was like “It’s me!”OF: Oh, wow.
MQ (24:08):
And tears here. OF
WeChat sticker?MQ: I made it by myself.
OF (24:18):
Very good. So you did the makeup. MQ
And what does it say? MQ
bǎimèishēng] (24:25):
That means “With this face, she turned back, with so much charm”.
OF (24:31):
Lovely. MQ
What’s your go to song to sing at KTV? MQ
[Wǒ de xīnlǐ zhǐyǒu nǐ méiyǒu tā]’,I only have you in my heart, there's no space
for anyone else.OF: Who sings that?
MQ (24:47):
黄小琥 [Huáng Xiǎohǔ], a singer from Taiwan.
OF (24:51):
OK. MQ
still in tone, I feel comfortable about it.OF: Yeah.
MQ (24:59):
And it’s a little bit jazz style, and a little bit drama style. And also 1980s disco.
OF (25:05):
Oh that’s ‘Peak Michelle’. Alright, I will…
MQ (25:09):
“我的心裡只有你沒有他，你要相信我的情意並不假 [Wǒ de xīnlǐ zhǐyǒu nǐ méiyǒu tā,
nǐ yào xiāngxìn wǒ de qíngyì bìngbù jiǎ]”
OF (25:20):
Oh. That's a free performance. And finally, what other China-related media or sources
of information do you use?MQ: Oh, my favourite is 哔哩哔哩 [Bìlībìlī].
I have never used it. What is 哔哩哔哩 [Bìlībìlī].
MQ (25:36):
Oh, you should use it. It's really a lovely platform. It's a video platform
movies, and just short videos made by ‘APP主[zhǔ]’, app owners. They make videos by
themselves. So people will share their ownunderstanding.
OF (25:57):
Right. MQ
Thank you, Michelle. MQ
Oh, I really enjoyed that. MQ
And tell me then, so out of all of the people who you know in China, who would you
recommend that I interview in the next seasonof Mosaic of China?
MQ (26:17):
I will introduce you to 大蒋 [Dàjiǎng]. He's a very funny boy. And he’s very warm-hearted.
He’s a documentary director, with - howto say - patients with Tourette’s.
OF (26:32):
Tourette’s. MQ
Right. MQ
understand more about these patients. Yeah.OF: I’m really interested in that.
MQ (26:44):
You will be. OF
Thank you, Oscar.
[Outro]OF: Well I hope that today's episode helped
to explain why your Chinese friends don'tlaugh at any of your jokes. Michelle actually
gave quite a few more examples of jokes thatwork in Chinese. So to hear the full version
(27:05):
of the episode, please follow the instructionson https://mosaicofchina.com to subscribe
to the PREMIUM version of the show on Patreonor 爱发电 [Àifādiàn]. Here are a few
clips of what you missed.
[Clip 1]MQ: “Corona! Corona!”. On the street,
everybody called us ‘Corona". I just thinkit’s that people weren’t sure about the
situation.[Clip 2]
(27:25):
“吃饭那个，今天挺热的，你得买个西瓜啊。[Chīfàn nàgè, jīntiān tǐngrède, nǐděi mǎi
gè xīguā a.]” Understand?OF: I understand. And I’m a bit scared.
[Clip 3]OF: But how does it work, then, with the Culture
Bureau? Because I thought that you need tohave permission about what the content will
be.MQ: Right now, it’s a little bit tough.
(27:46):
[Clip 4]"床前明月光，疑是地上霜 [Chuángqián
míngyuèguāng, Yíshì dìshàngshuāng]".The audience will laugh, because that's not
at the level of a highly-educated person.[End of Audio Clips]
One correction I think I should make is thatI don't think it's accurate to say that the
Muslims in 泉州 [Quánzhōu] were the firstMuslims in China. And I'm not even sure if
I was right in guessing about Zoroastrianismeither. I hope that at some point I'll have
(28:10):
a guest on this show from 泉州 [Quánzhōu]who can put me right. In any case I've posted
a couple of photos of the city on social media,so please check out the images on Instagram
or Facebook, or add me on my WeChat ID (28:20):
mosaicofchina, and I'll add you to the listeners group there.
From today's episode you'll also see photosof Michelle and her object, the dreaded bell;
her favourite WeChat sticker, which we maynot have clearly mentioned was of a radish
wearing make-up; there are a bunch of photosof Michelle performing with the Improviser
(28:41):
Alliance, as well as drumming with GroovePapa; and lots more besides.
Mosaic of China is me, Oscar Fuchs, with artworkby Denny Newell. Stick around until the end,
where you'll hear my catch-up with the danceprogramme curator Sabrina Chen from Season
01 Episode 26, whose voice you heard at thebeginning of today's episode. I'll be travelling
(29:03):
for a few days next week, but I'm going totry and press all the right buttons so that
the next episode gets released on time whileI'm away. So hopefully see you then.
[Catch-Up Interview]OF: Hello, Sabrina.
SC (29:23):
Hello, Oscar. Nice to see you again. OF
haircuts each time I see you.SC: Well, I didn't wash my hair this morning.
Sorry.OF: It looks good. I'm going to start with
a re-introduction, just in case people didn'tlisten to your original episode.
(29:44):
OK. Yeah. OF
the Theatres at the Shanghai InternationalDance Center.
Yes. OF
you talked me through the appreciation ofdance. And since then I've been to a few shows,
and I feel like I'm now an amateur fan. Istill don't know what I'm looking at, but
(30:05):
I enjoy it.SC: You have even left to your voice in our
theatre.OF: Well… So, explain what happened.
You made the announcement. OF
So every time we start a show, we will have to listen to your voice first. To make
sure we don't eat. We don't take photos duringthe show.
OF (30:25):
But I thought what I recorded was just the special announcement for COVID, right?
So it included things about all the measuresthat you had put into place.
SC (30:35):
Yeah, but it's still within the post-pandemic period. So we still keep using that thing.
[Clip of the announcement]OF: “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the
Grand Theatre of the Shanghai internationalDance Center”.
[End of Clip]OF: I hope it's doing a good job.
Yeah, I really enjoy it. OF
(30:57):
voiceover artist. Sadly, no-one else has come.SC: Well, you should invite your friends to
come to the theatre to listen to it, maybesome more people will invite you to do more
announcements.OF: Yes. So, you are in charge of the programme
at the dance theatres. And a lot of your jobwas about going around the world, and looking
(31:19):
at dance companies, and inviting them to Shanghai.SC: Yeah.
OF (31:22):
So that's not quite what you're doing these days.
SC (31:26):
No, because till now, we still cannot invite any international groups to come into
China. So actually, we had lots of performancesperformed by Chinese local artists. We haven't
actually cut the connection with the internationalworld, because we did some programmes, and
(31:47):
exchange programmes through the internet,and discussions on Zoom. We recently had a
collaboration with Scottish Dance Theatreto make a short film. Yeah, things like that.
OF (32:00):
Yes. And this is what I expected you to say. Because a lot of artists who are normally
working in theatres, they've had to adaptin this last year/2 years, right?
SC (32:11):
Yeah, I think it's quite difficult for all types of artists around the world. For
the Chinese artists, they're quite lucky,because China is quite big enough, and we
recovered very soon, which gives more opportunitiesto local artists in the past year. So it's
actually a good opportunity for Chinese artists.OF: And I guess that would have at least been
(32:35):
one positive, because maybe you would havediscovered some local dance companies in China
that otherwise you may have overlooked, right?SC: Yes. Yeah, exactly. Especially, we gave
the opportunity to young artists, who maybenever had the opportunity to go on stage before.
But we discovered them in the last year. Becauseit was very difficult for them. We even sponsored
(33:00):
them, to support them with real money.OF: Yeah.
Yeah. To help them to make some new programmes, and bring them to the theatre.
OF (33:09):
Wow, so actually, you've almost commissioned this work.
SC (33:13):
Yeah, we commissioned, we co-produced. Lots of interaction with them. I think every
theatre in China in the past year has to carveour own way to make some money. But what we
did was, we opened our online shop with thelive host. You know, it's very popular.
OF (33:33):
Oh god, yes. SC
sells goods through the internet, throughTaobao. We did so. And the hosts, you know,
guess who are the hosts?OF: Go on…
SC (33:47):
The ushers. OF
now?SC: Yes, you know, because during those months,
there is no job for the ushers.OF: Yes.
No performances. But we don't want them to just be around with nothing to do. So we
gave them this new opportunity. “Go on Taobaoevery night to see how other hosts sell goods.
(34:12):
So your responsibility is to come back tothe theatre, to be in front of the camera,
to sell our theatre goods and souvenirs”.And so actually it was a great experience,
because we also discovered the other characterof our ushers.
OF (34:28):
Yes. SC
Yes. SC
was to be polite, and open the door, and checkthe tickets, right? But actually they are
talented, they can sing, they can play music.So in the broadcast room, while selling the
(34:50):
goods, they sometimes will play guitar, andsing a song to our audience.
Amazing. SC
the goods, because it's not that much moneythat we can make. It's a way to spread the
culture of theatre to more people on the internet.And since then, we now have a tradition. Every
(35:15):
programme, we will sell it on Taobao.OF: Yeah right, through these ushers. What
about the future, then? Like, can you alreadystart to plan for some overseas companies
to come to China, or it's still too early?SC: We have always been planning for the international
companies, but it gets cancelled all the time.So it gets cancelled, then we re-plan, then
(35:40):
cancelled again, then re-plan. So we haveto keep working on it.
Yeah. Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, Plan D. SC
Can you imagine what date they will finally be able to come?
SC (35:51):
I think we’ll try to make it happen at the end of this year. Because the Shanghai
International Arts Festival will happen inOctober-November. Because it was sadly cancelled
last year.OF: Of course.
And this year, I think they will manage to at least do something.
OF (36:08):
Yes. Well, I will be releasing this catch-up when we release the episode with Michelle
Qu.SC: Yeah.
So Michelle Qu was the one who you recommended for Season 02.
SC (36:19):
Yes. OF
Yes, of course. We always go out for dinner. Yeah. And she's very positive, every time
I see her. I don't know where she gets allthese jokes from. So she's really a talent.
OF (36:37):
Wow. And let's keep in touch, Sabrina. I'm really happy that you were in Season 01.
SC (36:43):
Yeah. OF
still be there. So please keep in touch.SC: No problem.
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