Tony Chou does comedy in English and Chinese. Comedy needs to stay abreast of contemporary events, he says.[Photo provided to China Daily]

When the United States government shut down for about two weeks in October 2013, Tony Chou was studying professional stand-up shows in the country, and one night in Washington he got the chance to perform.

Banners he saw during the day about the Tea Party, heavily embroiled in the shutdown, gave him an idea for what he could talk about, given that tea is a familiar drink for the bilingual stand-up comedian from China.

"How amazing that you know I (a Chinese) don't like coffee but tea, and hung out the banner to welcome me," he said, to appreciative laughter from the audience.

That is an example of the 31-year-old comedian making use of his cultural background. Chou is a journalist for China Central Television, but in Beijing he is better known as a stand-up comedian.

An engineer by training, Chou found his heart yearning for the podium or the stage. But he was disappointed with traditional Chinese comedy, especially cross-talk, which is similar to stand-up comedy.

"I was just not satisfied," he says. "The traditional comedic performance should keep up with changes in the world."

Around the end of 2012, Chou began to look for comedy clubs and occasionally had the open mic in a bar. By then it was hard to find a club for a stand-up show in Chinese. Gradually, a group of Chinese comedians found one another and formed a group.

Joining Des Bishop, the famous Irish-American stand-up comedian who co-organizes the Humor Section, a stand-up comedy performing information group, Chou says it is more like a group of young people with the same hobby hanging out there.

"Professionals attract professionals," he says, "The old world is less appealing, so let's focus on the new."