Monan Tong: Searching for Dr. Wang 童漠男个人脱口秀专场《寻找王医生》

Hello everyone, I’m Tong Monan.

Searching for Dr. Wang is my second solo show. In 2022, I did my first solo show, Bei Xia Guan, but I hadn’t performed it much before the content was condensed and included it in the TV show. It broke my heart a little.

Many friends wanted me to bring Bei Xia Guan back, but doing it again would somewhat lack the element of surprise. I wanted to continue Bei Xia Guan in another way, so I wrote Searching for Dr. Wang.

This show is entirely different in content from Bei Xia Guan, but it’s about the same thing—how we can make ourselves happy. Or, you could say Searching for Dr. Wang is the Bei Xia Guan of my adulthood. Interestingly, I found it, too.

As for why I need to search for Dr. Wang and what I can gain from searching for him, you’ll have to see it live. I promise to make you happy. Not just any kind of happiness.

For those who haven’t seen Bei Xia Guan but have been wanting to, Searching for Dr. Wang might feel like finding something that was lost and then found again. Both shows explore the idea of happiness, but while Bei Xia Guan talks about childhood happiness—which we can’t return to—Searching for Dr. Wang is the happiness I’ve found in my adult life, so it became this show.

Though the core theme is the same, the two shows are presented in completely different ways. Bei Xia Guan is more narrative, focusing on the personal experiences of Tong Monan, while Searching for Dr. Wang is designed to deliver pleasure through logic and reasoning.

I’ve added a note to this show: "The previous show (Bei Xia Guan) was very narrative, but this one leans more toward logic. It’s my first time trying this style." So when you step into this show, you’ll experience something different from Bei Xia Guan and see a slightly different side of me.

After half a year of touring, we’ve found it increasingly difficult to define Searching for Dr. Wang. Many different interpretations have appeared online. Some audience members have said, "Tong Monan isn’t doing stand-up; he’s telling fables," while others have said, "It’s an experimental show where 34% of the audience stands up and claps." All these varying reactions are adding layers to the experience of this show, expanding its perception.

Now, we want to bring this show to even more people, and we welcome more audiences to the theatre.