About
Jesse Appell is a Fulbright Scholar Alumni whose research focuses on Chinese humour and performance. He is a disciple of master Xiangsheng performer Ding Guangquan, and regularly performs Xiangsheng, bilingual improv comedy, and Chinese stand-up live and on TV. Jesse creates comedic online videos intended for the Chinese audience; one of these, “Laowai Style,” gathered 2 million hits across several media platforms.
Jesse’s performances, writing, and commentary on Chinese comedy, media, and culture have been seen and heard on CBS, TEDx, PBS, NPR and PRI, as well as Chinese media such as CCTV, BTV, and CRI. He has performed Chinese comedy at Yale University, University of Washington, Brandeis University and more on his “Great LOL of China” North American tour. He was listed as one of the “People of the Year” by the Global Times in 2012. Jesse founded www.laughbeijing.com, with the focus of using comedy to bridge cultural gaps.