How He Went From Zero to Hero: An Interview with Standup Comedian Donnie Fan

If you’re at all familiar with Beijing's standup comedy scene, then there's no doubt that you'll have heard of Donnie Fan. Since he burst into the comedy in the capital a year and a half ago, he's become a key figure in that community. But he's not only limited to comedy in Beijing, having also performed in various cities across China such as Nanjing, Chengdu, Chongqing and many more. 

Now, Donnie Fan has put together his own headline comedy show titled FROM HERO TO ZERO, which will run Mar 19, Mar 25 and Mar 26. The show even has its own music video, which you can check out on Donnie’s official WeChat channel Donniefancomedy.

Before his show debuts on Saturday, I spoke with Donnie about his comedy journey and how he came to be in a position to headline his own show, which, in comedy years, has happened relatively quickly. 

First of all, how did you get started in comedy?
Pre-Covid I didn’t spend a lot of time in the foreign circles or foreign groups but post-covid I started seeking out more opportunities to mingle and came across a show called “comedy without a net.” It was a mix of stand up comedy and improv comedy with a gameshow twist and it was AWFUL. Yet, myself and the entire audience had a great time laughing at how cringe it was. Some of my friends were even participating which I didn’t even know about and it just seemed like the comedy circle was a lot of great fun.  

What made you decide to start doing comedy?
I spent years in New York at every comedy show I could get to. I would spend a lot of time at afterhours comedy shows — like the kind that don’t start until 10 or 11pm, and I always knew that was the dream job. The atmosphere at a live comedy show is unlike anything I’ve ever been a part of. It’s exhilarating, but I never thought I’d be able to do that until I saw “comedy without a net.”

What was it like doing stand up for the first time?
It was surreal. I invited some friends to come but there were a lot of people in the audience that I didn’t know. I went on stage with my hat covering my eyes so I wouldn’t have to see the audience’s disapproval, but the disapproval never came. The audience laughed at every punchline, and I walked off the stage to a huge applause. I don’t really remember being on stage, but the feeling before and after was so satisfying. I couldn’t wait to keep going. 

What has been the greatest challenge since you started?
It would probably be managing my weight! When I started comedy I had a six pack! But the bar/night/food culture has definitely put a lot of weight on me. It’s interesting watching new comedians drink a lot (which is definitely something I did when I started) and then see how people phase out the alcohol at shows as time goes on.

How do you think you have grown in comedy?
The really important thing for me from the beginning was about finding out who I was going to be on stage in comedy. Was I going to be an arrogant comedian or more humble. Was I going to do observational comedy, narrative comedy, or one-liners? When I figured out that the best thing I could do was tell the wonderfully absurd, and mostly true, stories from my life everything kind of fell into place for me on the stage. 

In just over a year you’ve gone from being a newbie on the comedy scene to headlining your own show, why do you think you’ve been so successful?
I think I had a really good understanding of what it takes to be successful at comedy. I wanted to welcome the failures so I could know how to grow from them and I also wanted to make sure that when I wrote jokes they fit into my set in a way that made narrative sense. Sometimes I write jokes that I think are funny and really good, but they don’t really fit into my set at all so I just kind of scrap them and put them away for a random open mic, but by writing in the structure I write in, even when jokes don’t land the audience seem to be entertained by the stories I’m telling. 

As for the success I’ve had, I attribute that to always setting the bar higher and higher. I personally am so humbled and appreciative of everything I’ve had but I’ve never been satisfied just staying in one place. Whenever I accomplish something(like going from doing 5 minutes to 10 minutes to opening a real show to featuring on a show to doing 30 minutes on a gig in another city, I’ve always wanted to push myself to see if the success will carry to the next stage. I’ve been really lucky that it has so far.

Where did the idea behind this comedy show come from?
A year ago after I had just done a birthday show and I thought that if I ever have a headlining special I want it to be called FROM HERO TO ZERO which would represent the self-deprecating nature of my humor. My favorite Disney movie is Hercules and one of the songs from that is From Zero to Hero, and considering my Chinese name is 英雄 yīng xióng (hero) this just seemed like the perfect fit. I never thought I’d get the opportunity but here it is! I’ve already considered the next show’s title: Picking up the pieces. We’ll see if I get there!

If you could go back and talk to yourself a year ago, what advice would you give?
I would say to be even more aggressive than I was. I was really shy about accepting praise for a while. I still am. I’d like to just convince myself that it’s okay to be praised. I know I’m not the only person who struggles with that. Especially comedians. So many of us get comedy from our insecurities. Complimenting that can be confusing sometimes, but oh man is it always appreciated! 

What are your comedy influences?
My comedy influences are Mike Birbiglia, John Mulaney, Louis CK, Emo Philips, Eugene Mirman, Neil Hamburger and Patton Oswalt.

Lastly, do you have any tips or advice for any other budding comedians out there?
The worst thing that can happen as a new comedian is that nobody laughs at your jokes. And then when you’re done people totally forget about you and it’s like it never happened. It sounds awful, but once you experience that, you’ll never really feel anything lower than that. Comedy is about developing thick skin and moving on to your next joke, to your next show, and always believing in your joke. Believe in your joke and stick to it and keep trying and you’ll see how much fun this whole world is! And stay off all of the alcohol!

You can find out more about Donnie Fan at his website: Donnie Fan | Standup Comedy in Beijing and can follow his WeChat Channel by scanning the QR code below.

FROM HERO TO ZERO, presented by Comedy Club China, will run on Mar 19 from 7.30pm at the Gent's Club, Mar 25 from 8pm at Li-Pi Records at 798, and Mar 26 from 7.30pm at UMU near Ritan Park. Scan the QR code for tickets and details.

READ: Craft Beer Leaps Forward in Beijing: Q&A With Great Leap Brewing’s CEO Allen Lueth

Images: Donnie Fan