A young comedian’s “second venture” in Chongqing
Market Information Network 2023-05-05 17:16:49 Source: Xinhuanet Comments:
In May in the mountain city, the fragrance is strong, and the south wind is warm. At 8:30 in the evening, Song Hao, the owner of Dou Lefang, finished his elective course teaching at Sichuan International Studies University and rushed to the Bayu Bookstore of Shapingba District Cultural Center to prepare for the last show “Masterpieces and Dialects” tonight.
In 2011, Song Hao, a boy from Liaoning, established the first youth cross talk group in Chongqing, Dou Le Fang. A stage, a table, two actors, iconic long gowns… Dou Le Fang started the road to integrate northern cross talk and Chongqing dialect. From a performance with only one audience to a full venue, from subsidized performances to having two resident theaters, relying on their love for cross talk, they took root in Chongqing and worked quietly, integrating Chongqing hot pot and other elements full of regional characteristics into cross talk, and launched His innovative works have won awards frequently across the country.
In 2023, the cross talk team of Chongqing Dou Lefang and the Shapingba District Cultural Center will jointly create the “Youth Joy Gathering”, which will start at Bayu Bookstore on the 5th floor of the Shapingba District Cultural Center in Three Gorges Square at 7:30 every night. In the view of Song Hao, a young comedian and owner of “Dou Le Fang”, from “Zhou Zhou Yan” to “Daily Acting”, for the team, it is undoubtedly a “second venture” after the formation. “‘Tiantianyan’ puts forward higher requirements for the performance lineup, program quality, art form, etc.” Song Hao said, what is gratifying is that the “12-year-old” Dou Lefang has blossomed and borne fruit in Chongqing. In the future, we will be committed to making cross talk more “Chongqing” and introducing a series of “cultural delicacies” to the audience, so that everyone can taste the taste of Chongqing and the beauty of cross talk.
The picture shows Song Hao (left) and Wang Haibo performing cross talk “Masterpieces and Dialects”. (Photo by Yang Lingqin)
Pursue Dream Mountain City and set up “Dou Le Fang”
In 2004, Song Hao came to the mountain city of Chongqing with a “crosstalk dream” in mind, and met a group of like-minded young crosstalk actors. How to realize the dream of cross talk on the land of Bayu? The first is to improve skills. Song Hao got acquainted with Qiu Xiaobao, a national first-class actor of the Chongqing Quyi Troupe and a famous Chongqing cross talk artist, and asked him for in-depth advice on cross talk creation and performance. In mid-December 2006, Song Hao and his partner Ren Peng won the second prize for both creation and performance in the first Chongqing Quyi Competition. In January 2007, Song Hao officially worshiped Qiu Xiaobao as his teacher, and took root in the Chongqing folk art circle.
At this time, the field of small cross talk theaters in Chongqing is still blank. In 2011, Song Hao initiated the formation of Chongqing’s first youth cross talk team: “Cross talk is for fun, we are a workshop for making laughter, and finally decided on the “Amusement Workshop”. This started his first venture in life.
In February 2012, after contacting the venue and rehearsing the program, “Dou Le Fang” officially began to perform for Chongqing citizens and the general public. “The first to third games were all full, and the fourth game was gone. Why? In the first three games, everyone’s relatives and friends came to ‘get together’, and the fourth game really tested the appeal of the market and audience. “10 people, 8 people, 5 people…One night only one ticket was sold, and everyone still gathered their energy to perform on stage. Song Hao recalled that during the most difficult half a year at the beginning of “Dou Le Fang”, the actors, relying on their persistence in cross talk, insisted on performing even if they paid for “rewarding”. The laughter of the audience is the belief that supports them to persevere.
“Dou Le Fang” = traditional art + fashion content + “spicy taste”
Chongqing citizens’ understanding of cross talk is mostly limited to TV programs, and most of them go to the theater to watch performances as “the first time a big girl goes to Huaqiao”. Those who are willing to come to the show are either a few friends from the north, or an even smaller number of Chongqing local cross talk “old gunners”. According to “Chongqing Culture and Art breaking latest news”, around the 1930s, patriotic writers represented by Mr. Lao She created a batch of “new cross talk”, which was widely accepted by local audiences. In the 1980s, cross talk also flourished in Chongqing several times. Later, with the impact of diversified entertainment methods such as TV and video, cross talk performances gradually faded out of the Chongqing Quyi stage.
From the beginning of its establishment, Song Hao understood that in order to take root in Chongqing, it is necessary to inject “spicy flavor” into cross talk. “The tradition of cross talk is fashion. If you want to do cross talk well in Chongqing, you must learn more about Chongqing people’s language habits and humor, and keep pace with the times.”
After constant exploration and changing of the performance style, the “Spicy Taste” cross talk has gradually entered the vision of Chongqing citizens, and has been widely praised, attracting more and more audiences. Since 2015, “Dou Le Fang” has completed a transformation and upgrading with full-time actors and staff.
The special crosstalk performance of “Dou Le Fang” has been welcomed by more and more young audiences. (Photo provided by the interviewee)
At the same time, Song Hao also walked out of Chongqing with a “spicy taste” cross talk. “Since I talk about cross talk in Chongqing, I have to show Chongqing characteristics wherever I go.” Since 2014, “Dou Lefang” has appeared on the Chongqing Satellite TV Spring Festival Gala stage for 8 consecutive years; Hometown Acoustics and Nostalgia” won the highest award in the Chinese folk art circle – the 11th Chinese Folk Art Peony Award Literary Award. In April 2021, “Chongqing Wants” created by him appeared on Guangdong Satellite TV. Song Hao turned into a “Chongqing Spokesperson”. The audience salivated, and finally ended with a unique Chongqing dialect rap.
Inheritance and development of traditional art embraces young audiences
6-year-old Li Zhouzhou is an “old fan” of “Dou Le Fang”. “Cross talk is very funny. My parents and I come whenever we are free. Every time I listen to it, I am very happy.” In the performance, “Dou Le Fang” not only played cross talk The advantages of the performance are often interspersed with allegro, money board, double reed, magic, face-changing and other program forms, and sometimes incorporate elements such as folk songs and bands, which are deeply loved by young audiences. “Dou Le Fang” adheres to the concept of “fresh humor, fashion and health“, creates a “family carnival” theater, and at the same time cultivates young audiences for the art of cross talk.
Off the stage, Song Hao insisted on the inheritance of cross talk art in Chongqing. On the one hand, go back to the source. From 2010 to 2012, Song Hao and his master Qiu Xiaobao participated in the compilation of “Crosstalk Dictionary”, responsible for collecting and sorting out the development of crosstalk in Sichuan, Chongqing and even the southwest area and its representative figures. From 2011 to 2015, Song Hao traveled to Sichuan and Chongqing, collecting and sorting out 190,000 words of folk art materials in Sichuan and Chongqing. On the other hand, he actively promotes the art of cross talk in colleges and universities, helps and guides Chongqing University, Chongqing Normal University, Southwest University of Political Science and Law and other colleges and universities to set up student quyi clubs, and gives lectures in various colleges and universities. In February 2019, Song Hao introduced cross talk into the classrooms of colleges and universities in Chongqing for the first time, and Sichuan International Studies University officially opened the public elective course “Cross Talk Art Appreciation”. Not only that, “Dou Le Fang” also established the “Children’s Language Art Salon”, focusing on cultivating the next generation of cross talk in Chongqing.
“Youth Joy Gathering” has been “performed every day” in Bayu Bookstore for more than a month. With more than ten years of accumulated performance experience, “Dou Le Fang” has a relatively fixed audience group. Song Hao said, “The weekend attendance rate can reach more than 80%. We will go all out for each performance regardless of the number of audience. In the future, we will continue to work hard to continuously improve the quality of performances, enrich the program content, and bring more joy to the general public. “(Yang Lingqin)
Editor in charge: Niu Yuhang