China-Japan Relations: Japanese man becomes 'Xiangsheng' performer in Beijing

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China and Japan are not only neighbors, but two of the world's three largest economies. And aside from the economic ties, people-to-people exchanges run deep. One Japanese man living in Beijing has picked up a traditional Chinese form of comedy as his hobby. CGTN's Cui Hui'ao tells us the story.

This audience bursts into laughter, having been entertained by two comedians performing Xiangsheng, a traditional Chinese comedic art.

Neither of the performers is Chinese. The man who plays the supporting role of the crosstalk is from Japan.

And twenty minutes earlier, Nishida Satoshi was in backstage putting on his special apparel for the performance.

NISHIDA SATOSHI JAPANESE COMEDIAN "When I first watched Xiangsheng, I saw a pair of comedians on stage speaking in Mandarin, and audiences off the stage were all laughing. I thought the format was exactly like Japanese Manzai, except that the language is different. As someone from Kansai, I was so excited. I have to learn it."

Back then Satoshi was an exchange student in Beijing. Yet his obsession with the art was serious, and led to an actual apprenticeship. He took China's famous Xiangsheng performer Ding Guangquan as his teacher, and began learning the four basic skills: speaking, imitating, joking and singing.

NISHIDA SATOSHI JAPANESE COMEDIAN "My favorite part is imitation. I like to imitate different dialects. The Tianjin dialect is very interesting and humorous. And a lot of my friends speak in the Sichuan dialect."

Satoshi has now been performing Xiangsheng for six years, mostly classical works. He says nothing gives him more joy than connecting with a Chinese audience, to make them laugh and applaud.

But the 26-year-old says he had some moments of doubt as well, about his identity. Especially in 2014 when Japan and China's relations were at a low point.

NISHIDA SATOSHI JAPANESE COMEDIAN "My teacher said something that really moved me. He believes art transcends borders. It does not matter that he is Chinese and I'm Japanese. As long as I like to learn (Xiangsheng), he could teach me in a lifetime."

Satoshi now teaches Japanese at a local university. He says some of his Japanese friends at home do not understand his choice of learning Xiangsheng.

NISHIDA SATOSHI JAPANESE COMEDIAN "Many Japanese people's knowledge of China is limited to pandas, the Great Wall, Jackie Chan."

Satoshi says China and Japan, two neighbors, need to learn more about each other. And as a Japanese, he is doing just that. Cui Hui'ao, CGTN. Beijing.