Presentation Schedule
Examining the Agency of Chinese Audiences Through the Consumption of Xiangsheng(Crosstalk): A Case Study of Deyunshe (104736)
Session: On Demand
Room: Virtual Poster Presentation
Presentation Type: Virtual Poster Presentation
This study examines the agency of Chinese audience through their consumption of xiangsheng (crosstalk), focusing on the case of Deyunshe, the most popular group performing crosstalk in China. In Taiwan, Chinese audiences are often imagined as politically oppressed, lacking freedom of expression, and constrained by ideological control. However, observations of xiangsheng consumers reveal a very different picture: these audiences actively resist authority, orthodox narratives, and ideological imposition. By seeking out non-mainstream performances and forming affective bonds with performers, they participate in a dynamic cultural field that has shaped the extraordinary success of Deyunshe. This research traces the rise of Deyunshe, situating its development within China’s political, social, and historical transformations. It analyzes the performance style and examines commentary from scholars and social critics, along with the practices of Deyunshe’s devoted fans, known as "Deyun girls". Through these sources, the study explores how performers and audiences together have created a new mode of performance and a novel industrial structure for modern crosstalk over the past two decades. Drawing on the spectacles/performance paradigm (SPP), the study shows that crosstalk consumption in China is embedded in everyday life and marked by creativity, reflexivity, and identity formation. Fans engage in textual poaching, re-editing and sharing fan-made videos, and interact with performers to co-create meanings. Each performance becomes a carnivalesque space of participation and shared ecstasy. Overall, the study maps the cultural consumption and social practices surrounding Deyunshe, highlighting how participation, production, and re-creation express the agency of contemporary Chinese audiences.
Authors:
Ting-Yu Chen, Nanhua University, Taiwan
About the Presenter(s)
Dr Ting-Yu(Anne) Chen is a University Associate Professor/Senior Lecturer at Nanhua University in Taiwan
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Virtual Poster Presentation
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