Pic story: foreign expats perform China's cross-talk in Spanish

Raydis Franco (L) and Santiago Aragn rehearse cross-talk performance in the classroom at the College of Foreign Languages in Nankai University, north China's Tianjin, Dec. 6, 2023.

Raydis Franco from Venezuela and Santiago Aragn 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 Aragn takes the role of penggen, a supportive actor who reacts to the lead speaker's words.

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 Aragn 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.

In the future, Franco and Aragn will dedicate themselves to promoting Chinese culture through their cross-talk creation and performances. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

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

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

Raydis Franco (C, front) and Santiago Aragn (C, back) watch a performance in Nankai University, north China's Tianjin, Dec. 3, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Raydis Franco (L) and Santiago Aragn 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 (R) and Santiago Aragn look for books at an academic center of the College of Foreign Languages in Nankai University, north China's Tianjin, Dec. 6, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

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

Raydis Franco (1st R) talks with a student team who is responsible for script writing and video dissemination in Nankai University, north China's Tianjin Province, Dec. 4, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Raydis Franco (1st R) talks with students during a class break in Nankai University, north China's Tianjin Province, Dec. 4, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

Santiago Aragn gives a lecture in Nankai University, north China's Tianjin Province, Dec. 4, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Ran)