Huayu: Starting from managing the Mahua FunAge Theater Troupe

2004 5 Month 15 Day.

Another Saturday has arrived.

After a week of accumulating popularity, the jokes and humor created by the show were told to others as anecdotes.

The number of new viewers sitting in front of the TV waiting for the second episode of "Chinese Comedians" has increased significantly.

Faced with this situation.

Local TV stations, and even CCTV, all variety shows that aired in the same time slot as "Chinese Comedians" felt immense pressure.

Long Mei, producer of "Happy Camp"; Pan Qiuhua, producer of "Meet on Saturday"; Zhou Xiaodong, producer of "Variety Show"...

They were all extremely worried.

……

It will be delayed until 7:40.

Inside a residential building in Changsha.

Long Mei, leaning back on the sofa, switched the TV to Liaoning Channel and waited quietly for the second episode of "Chinese Comedians" to air.

During the ten-odd minutes of waiting, Long Mei, whose mind was blank, couldn't help but recall his ten-year professional career.

In 1993, she started working at Hunan TV. In 1996, she joined the team preparing for the "Happy Camp" program. In 1997, she became the main director and planned classic game segments such as "Two Wonders" and "Happy Fax". In 2003, she officially took over as the producer of "Happy Camp".

Over seven years, she watched "Happy Camp" rise to glory, and then watched it decline as it was squeezed out by similar variety shows from other TV stations.

Now, another show called "Chinese Comedians" has emerged in the market.

Although "Chinese Comedians" is a seasonal program, it has genuinely impacted "Happy Camp," which airs on Saturday nights.

The ratings for "Happy Camp" fell below 2% last week.

What makes things even more challenging for traditional variety show producers like Long Mei is that "Chinese Comedians" is trying to re-educate the market, educate the audience, and raise their awareness of variety shows.

Ten groups of contestants compete on the same stage, and the audience can vote to eliminate contestants on the spot. There are also new works full of laughs every week. After one contestant is eliminated every two weeks, a new contestant will take his place, which provides a lot of freshness and excitement.

After viewers have been educated by this "fast-paced + highly stimulating" model for a while, when they go back to watch traditional celebrity variety shows, they will only feel "why is it so slow" and "so boring".

At that time, producers will need to spend more effort readjusting the rhythm and regaining the audience's attention.

But how to reform "Happy Camp" is something Long Mei has absolutely no clue about right now.

Long thought of the industry news he had heard today.

The core planner of the variety show "Chinese Comedians" is none other than Shen Feiyang, the general manager of Happy Twist.

Speaking of Shen Feiyang, he does have some connection with "Happy Camp".

He Jiong, the main host of "Happy Camp", was the lead actor in the first stage play of Happy Twist and won the Best Actor Award at the first Golden Twist Awards.

The rise of Happy Twist can be partly attributed to He Jiong.

Long Mei pondered for a moment whether he could use He Jiong's connections to seek advice from Shen Feiyang.

Ok……

Long picked up his phone and sent a text message to He Jiong.

at this time.

The second episode of "Chinese Comedians" has also premiered.

After the opening remarks.

Zhao Benshan continued, "According to the rules, the winner of last episode is the last to perform this episode. So, Happy Twist, you can sit backstage and watch. The first to perform this episode is the Liaoning Folk Art Troupe, who will be presenting the skit 'Models.' Let's give them a round of applause..."

Zhao Benshan's apprentices.

As Long Mei watched Zhang Xiaofei appear on TV, he muttered to himself.

drip...

I heard my phone ring.

Long picked up his phone and looked at it.

He Jiong replied via text message: Sister Long, I'll ask President Shen for you.

Long replied with a "Thanks" and then focused on watching the program.

In the blink of an eye, more than an hour had passed.

The performances by the first nine groups of contestants were all pretty good, but none of them had anything as refreshing as "Tropical Thunder".

As Long watched, he suddenly remembered the "recency effect" that often occurs in competitive variety shows, where the audience usually has a deeper impression of the last performance.

Happy Twist will be performing last. If their work is still refreshing, they might very well take first place again.

Isn't this just a disguised form of the strong becoming stronger?

However, putting the first episode of the previous one at the end does create suspense and keep viewers watching.

but……

Long thought about it for a moment and realized that everyone gets creatively fatigued, and the probability of producing a good work every time is not 100%.

Zhao Benshan's announcement came over the TV: "Next, please enjoy the skit 'Dad, Dad, Dad' performed by the BJ Happy Twist Troupe. Hmm, why do I feel like I'm being taken advantage of?"

Zhao Benshan smiled and walked to the side.

A burst of laughter came from the television.

The camera cuts to the next scene.

The stage set has been changed to a school gate.

What a terrible name...

After muttering a complaint to himself, Long focused on watching the program.

"Dad, Dad, Dad" is a social comedy about "child abduction prevention".

A key feature of this skit is its use of a "play within a play" structure, balancing humor and pathos.

Shen Teng plays a human trafficker disguised as an old woman who attempts to abduct two elementary school students played by Ai Lun and Huang Bo.

He tried all sorts of clumsy tricks, from pretending to fall and asking for help, to lying that the children's father had been hit by a car, to offering snacks, but each time the clever children easily saw through his schemes.

Not only did he fail to abduct a single child, but he also "lost five remote-controlled cars," making the whole process full of laughs.

Just then, the plot takes a turn. It turns out that Shen Teng's true identity is a father who lost his child many years ago. Ai Lun and Huang Bo are parents who lost their children in the same way. The three of them tour all over the country, performing self-written and self-acted anti-abduction skits to promote anti-abduction efforts.

Finally, the three, along with other elementary school students who made guest appearances, recited an anti-abduction nursery rhyme, using their "personal experience" to remind all parents to be vigilant:

"If a stranger offers you snacks, don't take them; don't be greedy."

"If a stranger tries to strike up a conversation, don't say anything, just turn around and leave."

"Don't drink if a stranger offers you a beverage; they might have drugged it."

"Stranger, let me carry you away, hold on tight to the railing."

Parents, be vigilant and upgrade your awareness of child abduction prevention.

"Children, don't be afraid, your parents will find you."

The laughter that had preceded them now turned into tears and sobs.

"Waaaaah..."

Long Mei is crying her eyes out.

This was the first time she had ever watched a comedy sketch that ended tragically after a happy beginning.

However, the skit "Dad, Dad, Dad" is not forced to be sentimental; it is very natural.

From all corners of the country, at least a million women comrades, like Long Mei, shed tears.

……

On TV.

The camera cuts to the next scene.

Zhao Benshan commented: "To be honest, I watched this program once during rehearsals and thought it was a good thing. Watching it again today, it feels different."

"We hear a lot about child abduction prevention, but few of us really take it seriously. To turn this topic into a skit that makes the audience laugh, cry, and reflect is something not everyone can do. It's very gratifying and gratifying to see such a dedicated group creating content for ordinary people."

……

Before announcing the rankings for this episode, we first focused on GG.

Long Mei had also recovered.

He has time to think about other things.

In her opinion, this skit by Happy Twist is ingeniously structured, full of funny jokes, has a very high theme, and its choice of subject matter is unprecedented.

Anti-trafficking propaganda has been a hot social topic in the past two years. From 2001 to 2003, more than 4 trafficked women and children were rescued nationwide.

At a time when the State Administration of Radio and Television is demanding the "purification of the screen," the emergence of a work with such a positive message and concern for social issues means that "Chinese Comedians" will most likely receive official exposure and support.

Happy Twist and Shen Teng may also rise to the mainstream stage as a result.

drip...

The phone rang again.

Long picked up his phone and looked at it.

He Jiong: This is President Shen's mobile number...

Long saved each of his phone numbers.

At this moment, the TV screen switched back to "Chinese Comedians".

After a series of suspenseful ranking announcements, Happy Twist unsurprisingly took first place again this time.

Xiao Lin ranked last in both episodes and was eliminated.

The Liaoning Folk Art Troupe and Guo Donglin continued to hold second and third place, respectively, while Xiao Shenyang moved up to fourth place and Jia Ling ranked sixth.

"This program is really high quality." After saying this again, Long Mei turned off the TV.