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The term "xiangsheng" (written 像生 or 象聲) originally referred to the act of imitating someone's speech and actions. It rose as a performing act during the Ming Dynasty. From the Qing Dynasty to the the 1920s, xiangsheng gradually developed to become a style of comedic monologue. Later xiangsheng came to be performed as a dialogue and sometimes even in groups of three or more.
The earliest xiangsheng comedian known by name is Zhang Sanlu (張三祿), who performed in the mid nineteenth century.
After the widespread use of MandarinStandard Mandarin refers to the official Chinese spoken language used by the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China on Taiwan, and Singapore. Standard Mandarin is based on the Beijing dialect, which belongs to Mandarin, a group of Chinese diale from 19491949 is the common year starting on Saturday. see link for calendar) Events January-February January 4 RMS Caronia of the Cunard Line departs Southampton for New York on her maiden voyage January 4 February 22 Series of winter storms in Nebraska, Wyoming,, the popularity of xiangsheng increased throughout the People's Republic of ChinaThe People's Republic of China PRC comprises most of the cultural, historic, and geographic area known as China. Since its founding in 1949, it has been led by the Communist Party of China (CPC). It is the world's most populous country, with a population. It is a standard feature of the lavish government-sponsored Spring Festival televisionSee TV (disambiguation) for other uses and Television (band) for the rock band Television is a telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures and sound over a distance. The term has come to refer to all the aspects of television p specials.
Modern xiangsheng is made up of four skills - speaking (說), imitating (學), teasing (逗), and singing (唱).