Quyi

Quyi (quyi 曲艺) is the generic term for several performing arts of traditional Chinese Sprechgesang (shuochang 说唱). It includes art forms like Chinese sketches (xiaopin 小品), bamboo clappers (kuaiban 快板) or Chinese cabaret (xiangsheng 相声).

Kuaiban

Kuaiban is a performing art of Chinese Quyi. By using bamboo clappers (zhuban 竹板) a rhythm is created on that a rhythmic Sprechgesang is spoken in rhymes. Content of Kuaiban pieces are traditionally of folklike quality. The length of such pieces varies from few seconds to several hours; but the majority of them have a length between around two to eight minutes (short pieces xiaoduan 小段) and eight to twenty minutes (long pieces changduan 长段).

Example for a Kuaiban piece: 

Xiangsheng

The performing art Xiangsheng is the most popular form of Chinese Quyi. Sometimes translated as crosstalk, it can be described as a kind of western cabaret and stand-up comedy with Chinese characteristics. The four basic techniques of Xiangsheng are speaking (shuo 说), imitating (xue 学), teasing (dou 逗) and singing (chang 唱). The most popular form is the dialogue form of Xiangsheng (duikou xiangsheng 对口相声), but the monologue form (dankou xiangsheng 单口相声) is also very common. The length of such pieces is similar to Kuaiban pieces.

Example for a Xiangsheng piece: