Chinese stand-up comedy gets a shot in the arm from women comedians who mine stereotypes about the sexes
- Yang Li delivers the sharpest barbs in the softest way, Li Xueqin often jokes about her boss, twins Yan Yi and Yan Yue find humour in the pressure to be slim
- Their jokes find a ready audience among fans of stand-up comedy in China, most of whom are young women
With a style that’s been described as delivering the sharpest barbs in the softest way, Yang Li is one of several mainland Chinese female stand-up comics who have shot to fame this year thanks to their performances on Rock & Roast.
Stand-up comedy, a Western import, began making inroads in China little more than a decade ago, and became popular only in recent years. Three seasons of Rock & Roast, a stand-up comedy internet television show, have been screened so far, with participants – including a growing number of women – competing to be crowned the series winner.
Li Xueqin is another comic making a name for herself. Like Yang, she reached the final six in this year’s season of Rock & Roast. Both she and Yang have grown in fame with their appearances on Chinese talk shows.
Other top female stand-ups include twin sisters Yan Yi and Yan Yue, and Zhao Xiaohui, who is a worker in a car factory and performs stand-up comedy in her spare time.
