Comedian heals self through laughter

Comedian Liu Yang, 37, hit the public spotlight last year. During that time, he led a team to the final victory in a hit sketch comedy competition and was awarded the best scriptwriter. Meanwhile, he made the top five in another stand-up comedy competition show. His initiated podcast channel reached 500 episodes and the movies and online series he starred in connected with audiences. In the recent New Year's Eve gala by video-streaming platform Bilibili, favored especially by the younger generation, he also acted as the host.

Growing up as a straight-A student in the country's competitive education system, Liu's innate drive and competitive spirit allowed him to balance his time.

In a single day, he would schedule three open microphone performances in Beijing, then move on to record the sketch comedy competition Amazing Night, followed by a magazine photo shoot and a gym session. Later, he would rush home to pack his bags and fly to Shanghai for the live recording of the stand-up comedy competition King of Comedy where he would perform his stand-up routine.

However, Liu, the son of parents who enforced a strict educational approach, also struggled with high self-expectations and a lack of self-confidence, frequently yielding to feelings of anxiety and envy.

Fortunately, last year was also a period during which he, having always achieved A grade as a student and desperately sought recognition from others, learned to take it easy.

"When I was young, even if I ranked first in exams, my parents would remind me that it was just luck and others would soon catch up with me," Liu recalls.

During his teenage years, he was accustomed to rising early and staying up late, dedicating himself to studying to ensure he remained at the top.

His mother is a Chinese language teacher and his father a chemistry teacher.

When Liu was in the first year of middle school, the family moved from their hometown in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region to Beijing, where Liu found it challenging to integrate into the new environment.

"I lacked confidence. When having meals with my peers in Beijing, I felt obligated to entertain them. I thought that if they found the gathering boring, they wouldn't invite me again," Liu says.

Humor became his key to social acceptance. His continuous pursuit of "making others laugh" also guided him to his career.

Attracted by the humorous teaching style of an English teacher from the Chinese private tutoring company New Oriental Education and Technology Group during his university years, Liu decided to become an English teacher in the company after graduating from Zhejiang University where he studied energy and environmental systems engineering.

"I was always thinking about how to make an English class interesting, how to deliver the punchline just right, hoping to provide students with a pleasant learning experience," Liu says.

In 2015, with the emergence of Western stand-up comedy in Beijing, Liu ventured into the genre to entertain a wider audience.

Two years later, Liu, along with three other stand-up enthusiasts, launched the comedy club Danliren in Beijing.

Through this platform, they organized stand-up performances and promoted the art form in China.

Liu also authored the handbook Everyone Can Learn Stand-Up Comedy for training new comedians, which later became a go-to guide for aspiring novices. Each year, he would debut his brand-new solo stand-up comedy show lasting over an hour, becoming a cornerstone of the club.

Despite this, as online stand-up comedy competitions gained popularity in China, Liu's peers soon gained fame and admiration through their appearances on these hit shows. While Liu was once dubbed the "OG" (original gangster) in the offline stand-up comedy scene, his fame paled compared to some of his peers and even those who came after him. This realization plunged Liu into deep anxiety. He yearned to prove himself by crafting standout jokes that could earn him fame.

"Sometimes, I can't help but feel envious of others," he admits.

He would playfully incorporate these negative emotions into his stand-up routines and then find a momentary escape in the audience's laughter.

"During my most painful periods, I was highly productive in writing jokes," he says.

It was only when he ventured into sketch comedy in 2022, a genre known for its short, entertaining scenes lasting between one and 10 minutes, that he found himself facing his pains head-on within this comedic realm rather than shying away from it.

"As an actor, I cannot evade certain emotions. I must understand and control them," he says.

"Simultaneously, sketch comedy also shows the countless possibilities of people's lives. As a sketch performer, I cannot label any of these lives as miserable."

The range of possibilities has given him a broad view of his real life, helping him, a person used to aiming for perfection, to come to terms with his averageness.

He has depicted a variety of imaginative characters in sketch shows, ranging from a spy, prisoner, mafia boss, nursing home caregiver, pirate, and exam invigilator to a monster.

In one of his sketch shows, he reimagined the Chinese classic novel Journey to the West, which tells the fictional journey of Buddhist monk Xuanzang and his three disciples — Monkey King, Pigsy, and Sandy (Sha Monk) — to India during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

While the Monkey King typically steals the spotlight in the novel, Liu dismantled the original storyline in his comedic adaptation, shining a spotlight on Sandy, a character with a smaller role in the original tale.

This innovative adaptation not only offered viewers a fresh perspective on Sandy's character but also symbolized the many kind individuals who lack outstanding accomplishments or stellar backgrounds, yet diligently fulfill their responsibilities. The work received acclaim from many viewers.

While playing the role of Sandy in this 18-minute sketch, Liu felt a part of himself was reflected in the character.

"Performing sketch has restored my sensitivity to life," he says.

Liu still meticulously manages his time. In a behind-the-scenes segment of the Amazing Night program, his daily routine is revealed — he returns home at 1 am to write scripts, sleeps at 2 am, wakes up at 5:30 am to feed his 1-year-old child, then rests for a while, records the program at 9 am and joins sketch rehearsals at noon. He hits the gym at 8:15 pm, bikes to a late-night open mic performance at 11 pm, and continues writing comedy scripts upon returning home.

However, he no longer does these activities out of anxiety. And he fulfilled his dream of being on the CCTV Spring Festival Gala on Jan 28.

"There is never a moment that truly proves oneself. For creators, the only thing to do is to do one's best in the process, and that's all," he realizes.

Liu's dedication to doing his best in his creations also inspires younger comedians.

Gao Chao and Gao Yue, twins who have emerged in Amazing Night, regard Liu as their most admired comedian on the show. The duo found Liu very helpful.

"His precise judgment in comedy is admirable. We also envy his energetic state during creation time. He never seems tired," Gao Chao says.

Typically, around 10 public performances are arranged before the sketches are recorded for the show, allowing comedians to gather audience feedback to refine their sketches. These public performances are usually attended by an audience of about 500, primarily from 18 and 35 years old.

Inspired by Liu, the Gao brothers are among the comedians who frequently participate in these public performances.