byLiuZhoupengLHASA,Feb.24(Xinhua)--IrecentlywatchedaTibetanstand-upcomedyshowinLhasa,thecapitalofsouthwestChina'sXizangAutonomousRegion.AlthoughIdidn'tunderstandthelanguage,theinfectiouslaughteroftheaudiencewasajoytowitness.Stand-upcomedieshavebecomeapopularformofentertainmentinChinainrecentyears,withcomediansfromwebshowsbecominghouseholdnames.However,IhadneverheardofaTibetanstand-upcomedybefore.SowhenaTibetancolleagueofmine,whoisalsoagoodfriend,mentionedattendingsuchanevent,mycuriosesitydrovemetojoinhim.ThesimplestagewassimilartowhatIhadseenatsmalltheatersinothercities.Itfeaturedonlyaredcurtainadornedwithalogoandamicrophonesonastand.ThelogodisplayedthenameoftheperformingteaminbothTibetanandEnglish--Shwow.Whentheshowbegan,amaninhis20stookthestage.Icouldn'tunderstandwhathewassaying,butIwasamazedbyhismarvelousstagepresence.Hetalkedconfidently,interactedwiththeaudienceandthrewoutpunchlinesoneafteranother,withtheaudienceburstingintolaughter.Seeingmypuzzledface,mycolleagueinterpretedformewhatthecomediansaidandIcouldgettheessenceofthejokes.Despitethelanguagedifferences,theperformancewasonparwithanyothersinothercitiesofChina.Iwastoldthatmostofhissetsarebasedonhislifeexperiencesandthoseofthepeoplearoundhim,soIassumehemustbeaverykeenobserver.Withthejournalistbugstirringwithinus,myfriendandIhurriedbackstageassoonastheshowended,whereImettheleadperformer--NyanzinDrakpa.Perhapsduetooursimilarages,Ifounditeasytocommunicatewiththe22-year-old,whoiscurrentlyastudentatauniversityinBeijing.InspiredbyhisfatherDorjeDrakpa,arenownedcrosstalkcomedianinXizang,heaspiredtocarryonthecomedianprofession,settingupateamforstand-upcomediestoattractyoungpeople.Followinginhisfather'sfootsteps,NyanzinDrakpapracticedhisartathomeandinhotels,evenintheshower,andmemorizedlinesandscriptswhileonthego.HisnotebookisfilledwithTibetantextscontaininghilariousjokescollectedfromdailylife.Hefrequentlyreferstothenotebookanddiscussespunchlineswithhisteammatestoensureprecisedelivery."SomeofourcontentislinkedtotheTibetanculture,sotellingtheminTibetanwillmakeiteasierfortheaudiencetoresonate,"hetoldme.Some30comedianshaveperformedaspartoftheShwowteam,withtherevenueofeachshowexceeding30,000yuan(about4,222U.S.dollars)duringtheholidayoftheTibetanNewYear.NyanzinDrakpatoldmeheplanstobecomeafull-timestand-upcomedianaftergraduation.HesaidthatTibetanstand-upcomedyiscurrentlyrare,butitsgrowingpopularitysuggestsanemergingmarket,inevitablyleadingtofuturecompetition.InXizang,thestudyanduseoftheTibetanlanguageandscriptareguaranteedbylaw.TheTibetanlanguageiswidelyusedinfieldssuchashealth,postalservices,communications,transport,finance,andscienceandtechnology.CoursesinbothTibetanandMandarinaretaughtinprimaryandsecondaryschoolsintheregion.InadditiontoTibetanoperas,Guozhuangdancesandtraditionalmusic,Tibetanstand-upcomedywasanothercaptivatingartformIhaveexperiencedinXizang.IbelievethatwithmoreandmoreyoungfaceslikeNyanzinDrakpajoiningin,variousformsofTibetanartwillbecomeincreasinglydiverseandvibrant,andcontinuetoflourishinthisregion.■Editor:DisclaimerTheviewsandopinionsexpressedinthisarticlearethoseoftheauthor's,GMW.cnmakesnorepresentationsastoaccuracy,suitability,orvalidityofanyinformationonthissiteandwillnotbeliableforanyerrors,omissions,ordelaysinthisinformation.