On the Verge of Politically Incorrect Comedy With Storm Xu, Nov 5 at the Great Outdoors

The funniest jokes are often those that would offend at least one person in the group. The art of navigating the knotty maze of political correctness while still being able to convey the message and trigger some laughs might just be on the list of "the top 10 most complicated things to do in the 21st century."

While Chinese and foreigners alike tend to make fun of each other (or themselves), it often goes miscommunicated because of the language barrier, misunderstood because of the cultural divide, or simply never witnessed because of the different mediums. If Chinese comedy seems to be mind-blowingly complicated because of Mandarin and, to make matters worse, a completely opposite sense of humor, rest your soul – an English-language Chinese comedian is on the way.

Shanghai-born Storm Xu will perform his first show in Beijing at Fangjia Hutong's Great Outdoors (formerly the Great Friends Outdoors Club) on Sunday, Nov 5. Storm jokes about everything we always wanted to ask about, but have been taught to keep to ourselves, no matter how curious we may be. At a recent show in Hong Kong, he did not shy away from the sensitive issues and casually mentioned that he was there to cool the tension down. "If you don't like my jokes, I won't be angry. I'll just make you disappear." Although in his biography on the official website he claims not to joke about his ethnicity and racial background, mentions of stereotypes and being approached as an 'insert-any-name' Asian-looking actor do occasionally make their way into his program.  

If you are looking to get lightly offended, he also does not leave out the expat community: He discusses the new system of classifying "foreign experts" by letters, through which English teachers fall into the lowly C category, and how they are followed by French people, with French English teachers falling into a previously nonexistent sub-tier. 

Storm Xu started his transition from an automotive engineer to a comedian by getting booked for corporate gigs. That required his shows to be much more staged than we are used to, with Xu submitting the scripts and video of the material for approval by the government. He says that it's not that they are looking for the politically sensitive content, but for any instances of the comedian simply being rude, having dirty jokes, or swearing. Fortunately, he is allowed to swear during Hong Kong performances. 

We briefly spoke to Storm Xu before his upcoming show on Sunday about Chinese comedy and him growing up as a class clown.

TBJ: You cut no slack for the curiosities of Chinese culture as well as self-loving expats. How do you choose the topics to address in your shows?
Storm Xu: I would usually have a routine prepared before the show, however, if something happened during the show, I also could adjust, pulling out some guns from my arsenal.                      

How did stand-up comedy first came in the picture? Any influences from China or abroad?
I grew up as a funny kid, the class clown type, so making people around me laugh was always my aspiration. Later on, I watched guys like Patrice O'Neal and Bill Burr on the internet and this sucked me into stand-up comedy.

How would you compare Western stand-up to Chinese stand-up? Are they merging toward a similar goal or do you see distinct differences?
Fundamentally, humor is similar regardless of the languages. You make people relate to you then throw a punchline. Although there definitely are some differences between Chinese and Western humor – for example, the references, and the cadence of languages.

What target audience do you usually create for?
My audience is wildly spread out now. I think people are fond of certain comedians based on their voice and tone, not too much on their nationalities.

What should we expect to hear in your upcoming Beijing show?
I have written quite a lot of new jokes regarding my life growing up in China and recent events here. And this is my first time doing an hour-long show in Beijing, should be fun!

Storm Xu will perform at Great Outdoors on Nov 5 (Sunday) at 8.30pm (Mandarin show starts at 6.30pm). Get tickets to the show by scanning the QR code. If you want to get early bird prices, follow their WeChat account and send them a message saying you that you saw an ad on the Beijinger to get it cheaper. 

More by this author here.

Images courtesy of the organizers, New York Times, Youtube