Popular Chinese crosstalk comedian to perform in Britain

LONDON - Guo Degang, a popular Chinese traditional crosstalk performer, will perform in Britain, introducing the Chinese comedic performing arts to Britain for the first time.

Guo, along with his De Yun She Performance Group, will perform at the iconic comedy venue Eventim Apollo, known by British audience as Hammersmith Apollo.

Joanna Dong with Icon Culture Ltd, organizer of the show which is scheduled for Nov 25, told Xinhua Thursday that it is the first time a Chinese crosstalk group perform at the famous comedy venue.

"It highlights the vitality of the traditional Chinese performing arts," she said.

Britain is widely acclaimed for its comedy in the Anglophone world. Eventim Apollo, which was opened in 1932, is one of the best known comedy venue around the globe.

Guo, who currently has 68 million followers at Sina Weibo, the Chinese Twitter-style microblogging service, started his first overseas performance tour in Australia in 2011. He has been performing in U.S., Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Japan and Singapore.

In March, the comedian was named the cultural ambassador in China for the National Museum of Australia.