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Straight talk from Da Shan
By Nancy Zhang |
May 30, 2010, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
Highly popular on Chinese TV for crosstalk comedy, Mark Rowswell is shooting straight as Canada's top Expo guy, reports Nancy Zhang.
TV host and celebrity Da Shan is best known for being a Caucasian man who speaks perfect Mandarin. Starting out in Chinese crosstalk comedy, or xiangsheng, he has been on Chinese TV since the 1980s.
But the man behind the persona, Canadian Mark Rowswell, has spent a lifetime trying to show that he has more than novelty value.
As his TV career exceeds 20 years, and now with his new appointment as the commissioner general for the Canada Pavilion at the World Expo, it seems Da Shan is having the last laugh.
"I was really bowled over when they asked me to be commissioner general -- the role as all round cultural ambassador is really my ideal job," Rowswell said.
"Foreign media label me as a comedian, but I consider myself a cultural bridge in many ways. This role at the Expo is the highlight of my career," he said.
He stands out amongst the other commissioners general who are diplomats, politicians or senior businessmen. But this is not the first time Canada has appointed a cultural ambassador to an Expo.
Rowswell follows the paraplegic athlete and national hero Rick Hansen who represented Canada at the Brisbane Expo in 1988.
Nor is it the first time that Rowswell has been recognized by his country as a cultural bridge to China.
He was the cultural advisor to the Canadian team at the Beijing Olympics.
Rowswell's appointment makes sense as the Canada Pavilion emphasizes soft power. It is built in conjunction with the famous circus act, Cirque Du Soleil, a unique arrangement in the Expo's 189 participating countries and regions.
Covered in 4,000 square meters of Canadian red cedar on the outside, the pavilion shows how Canadian cities are both living and livable places.
They exhibit the values of multiculturalism and social inclusion, environmental sustainability and creativity.
Complimentary elements include a cultural program, Engaging Canadians initiatives, a business and trade program and legacy projects.
But for Rowswell, the recognition from the Western side of the bridge has been hard won.
Da Shan, foreigner next door"My stage persona, Da Shan, is not a big star or a sex symbol. He is the foreigner next door. He may be from the other side of the world, but somehow there's something very familiar about him."Arriving in China as a 23-year-old student of Mandarin at Beijing University, he shot to fame after appearing in a comedy sketch for the CCTV Chinese New Year extravaganza in 1988. In those days, said Rowswell, it was like the Ed Sullivan era in North America.
Because it was the state's Central TV station, everyone watched the same thing at the same time. As fate would have it, Rowswell's portrayal of a foreigner able to understand Chinese humor and speak perfect Mandarin caught the public's imagination.
"My stage persona, Da Shan, is not a big star or a sex symbol. He is the foreigner next door. He may be from the other side of the world, but somehow there's something very familiar, very warm about him," Rowswell reflected.
This warm touch may explain his mass appeal. Just 10 years after the reform and opening up process, China was emerging from isolation and few Chinese had contact with the outside world, particularly with Western individuals. Da Shan became the first laowai, or outsider, that Chinese could really relate to.
His pitch-perfect Mandarin and commitment to xiangsheng -- a strict, complex and traditional form of comedy -- further closed the gap.
Humor is often the hardest part of a new culture for foreigners to understand, but making people laugh is a science that can be broken down to rules and rhythms, said Rowswell. "The rules are the same in Chinese humor, only the specifics are different," he explained. "For example one skit I did for a Chinese audience was based on the novel the 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms.' It's funny because everyone knows the book and its references. It's comparable to say the Monty Python films which are funny because everyone knows the bible stories."
Other jokes are universally funny. "In xiangsheng there's a format called the 'Big Truth' where there's a truth that everyone knows but no one dares to say because of politeness or whatever. If someone like a child blurts it out, then it's funny."
Ask Chinese what they think of Da Shan, and they're likely to say he's a Westerner who valued Chinese culture long before it was in vogue. It took a long time for him to gain attention amongst Westerners.
He recalls that when Westerners first heard of him it was usually from taxi drivers who would ask Canadian passengers if they knew Da Shan. Even when Rowswell did come to their attention, it was a mixed blessing. He says there were misperceptions that he was making fun of foreigners for a Chinese audience.
"It was never a monkey show, it was never making fun of foreigners. The format was usually me being a student and a teacher lecturing me on the wonders of Chinese civilization. But as I learn the skit, it shows in the end that I may know more than the teacher."
Now as more foreigners want to do business with China, more are willing to learn about Chinese culture. The number of foreigners in the entertainment industry who speak good Mandarin has multiplied, but few can match Da Shan's popularity.
In the past few 10 years Rowswell has moved into education, making TV programs to teach both English and Mandarin.
TV host and celebrity Da Shan is best known for being a Caucasian man who speaks perfect Mandarin. Starting out in Chinese crosstalk comedy, or xiangsheng, he has been on Chinese TV since the 1980s.
But the man behind the persona, Canadian Mark Rowswell, has spent a lifetime trying to show that he has more than novelty value.
As his TV career exceeds 20 years, and now with his new appointment as the commissioner general for the Canada Pavilion at the World Expo, it seems Da Shan is having the last laugh.
"I was really bowled over when they asked me to be commissioner general -- the role as all round cultural ambassador is really my ideal job," Rowswell said.
"Foreign media label me as a comedian, but I consider myself a cultural bridge in many ways. This role at the Expo is the highlight of my career," he said.
He stands out amongst the other commissioners general who are diplomats, politicians or senior businessmen. But this is not the first time Canada has appointed a cultural ambassador to an Expo.
Rowswell follows the paraplegic athlete and national hero Rick Hansen who represented Canada at the Brisbane Expo in 1988.
Nor is it the first time that Rowswell has been recognized by his country as a cultural bridge to China.
He was the cultural advisor to the Canadian team at the Beijing Olympics.
Rowswell's appointment makes sense as the Canada Pavilion emphasizes soft power. It is built in conjunction with the famous circus act, Cirque Du Soleil, a unique arrangement in the Expo's 189 participating countries and regions.
Covered in 4,000 square meters of Canadian red cedar on the outside, the pavilion shows how Canadian cities are both living and livable places.
They exhibit the values of multiculturalism and social inclusion, environmental sustainability and creativity.
Complimentary elements include a cultural program, Engaging Canadians initiatives, a business and trade program and legacy projects.
But for Rowswell, the recognition from the Western side of the bridge has been hard won.
Da Shan, foreigner next door"My stage persona, Da Shan, is not a big star or a sex symbol. He is the foreigner next door. He may be from the other side of the world, but somehow there's something very familiar about him."Arriving in China as a 23-year-old student of Mandarin at Beijing University, he shot to fame after appearing in a comedy sketch for the CCTV Chinese New Year extravaganza in 1988. In those days, said Rowswell, it was like the Ed Sullivan era in North America.
Because it was the state's Central TV station, everyone watched the same thing at the same time. As fate would have it, Rowswell's portrayal of a foreigner able to understand Chinese humor and speak perfect Mandarin caught the public's imagination.
"My stage persona, Da Shan, is not a big star or a sex symbol. He is the foreigner next door. He may be from the other side of the world, but somehow there's something very familiar, very warm about him," Rowswell reflected.
This warm touch may explain his mass appeal. Just 10 years after the reform and opening up process, China was emerging from isolation and few Chinese had contact with the outside world, particularly with Western individuals. Da Shan became the first laowai, or outsider, that Chinese could really relate to.
His pitch-perfect Mandarin and commitment to xiangsheng -- a strict, complex and traditional form of comedy -- further closed the gap.
Humor is often the hardest part of a new culture for foreigners to understand, but making people laugh is a science that can be broken down to rules and rhythms, said Rowswell. "The rules are the same in Chinese humor, only the specifics are different," he explained. "For example one skit I did for a Chinese audience was based on the novel the 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms.' It's funny because everyone knows the book and its references. It's comparable to say the Monty Python films which are funny because everyone knows the bible stories."
Other jokes are universally funny. "In xiangsheng there's a format called the 'Big Truth' where there's a truth that everyone knows but no one dares to say because of politeness or whatever. If someone like a child blurts it out, then it's funny."
Ask Chinese what they think of Da Shan, and they're likely to say he's a Westerner who valued Chinese culture long before it was in vogue. It took a long time for him to gain attention amongst Westerners.
He recalls that when Westerners first heard of him it was usually from taxi drivers who would ask Canadian passengers if they knew Da Shan. Even when Rowswell did come to their attention, it was a mixed blessing. He says there were misperceptions that he was making fun of foreigners for a Chinese audience.
"It was never a monkey show, it was never making fun of foreigners. The format was usually me being a student and a teacher lecturing me on the wonders of Chinese civilization. But as I learn the skit, it shows in the end that I may know more than the teacher."
Now as more foreigners want to do business with China, more are willing to learn about Chinese culture. The number of foreigners in the entertainment industry who speak good Mandarin has multiplied, but few can match Da Shan's popularity.
In the past few 10 years Rowswell has moved into education, making TV programs to teach both English and Mandarin.
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