Performing China’s Cross-Talk in Spanish: Foreign Teachers Shine on Stage in Tianjin

Raydis Franco (L) and Santiago Aragón rehearse cross-talk performance in a classroom at the College of Foreign Languages in Nankai University, north China’s Tianjin, Dec. 6, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Raydis Franco from Venezuela and Santiago Aragón from Spain are both Spanish teachers working at the College of Foreign Languages in Nankai University, north China’s Tianjin.

Attracted by Chinese culture, they started to learn and perform China’s cross-talk in Spanish. Franco serves as the dougen, a lead speaker who delivers punch lines and jokes, while Aragón takes the role of penggen, a supportive actor who reacts to the lead speaker’s words.

Raydis Franco (4nd L, 1st row) and Santiago Aragón (1st L, 2nd row) watch a performance in Nankai University, north China’s Tianjin, Dec. 3, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Their collaboration originated from the national-level university student innovation and entrepreneurship training program. Under the program, a student team from the Spanish department in Nankai University is responsible for the script writing and video dissemination.

While on stage, Franco and Aragón endeavor to adapt Chinese humor into Spanish-language context. This process also enables students to explore various humorous styles in two linguistic contexts and improve the students’ Spanish language skills.

Raydis Franco gives a lecture in Nankai University, north China’s Tianjin, Dec. 4, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

In the future, Franco and Aragón will dedicate themselves to promoting Chinese culture through their cross-talk creation and performances.