Zhao Benshan returns to Spring Festival Gala

A file photo of Zhao Benshan.

Renowned Chinese director Feng Xiaogang [File photo]

Famous Chinese comedian Zhao Benshan will make his return to the stage of the CCTV Spring Festival Gala in 2014, as rumors are swirling before the upcoming press conference on July 12, 2013.

According to the Beijing Times, the rumor about Zhao Benshan directing the language category of the 2014 CCTV Spring Festival Gala, is not true, an inside source said.

"We just don't have this title. No such position as 'director of the language category' exists," the source said. She added Zhao may come back to perform and become a consultant for the language performance category which includes comedy sketches and comic dialogues.

She also mentioned Zhao's close relationship with Feng Xiaogang, the well-known Chinese film director and general director-to-be of the 2014 gala.

Liu Shuangping, president of Benshan Media, told the press on Tuesday, "Mr. Zhao has deep feelings for the gala. As far as all things relating to the gala are concerned, I believe that Mr. Zhao will lend his strong support in meeting Mr. Feng's requirements."

According to West China Metropolis Daily, Zhao Benshan will come to Beijing Thursday night to meet with Feng Xiaogang in secret, and he will likely attend the press conference one day later. Other reports claim Feng has already had several phone conversations with Zhao.

"Zhao wanted to perform at the Spring Festival Gala in the past two years, but he had creative differences with the directors so he had to regretfully quit," the source said.

Zhao, a household name in China, participated in the preparations for the 2011 and 2012 galas, but for one reason or another did not make it to the stage. Zhao even vowed that he would never return to the event.

"From now on, audiences won't see me performing skits [anymore]," Zhao said. "I have decided to quit." The comedian made the bold statement on a talk show hosted by his fellow crosstalk comedian Guo Degang in Beijing in January of 2013.

"The pressure to perform at the Spring Festival Gala of China Central Television (CCTV) is unimaginable, and I have not been in good health these last few years," Zhao added.

Yet Feng Xiaogang, the first big-name film director to direct the gala, will welcome him back. Feng, as general director of the gala, will be assisted by another director, who may well be veteran Zhang Xiaohai, it was reported. The alternative plan, however, also includes appointing two dance and opera directors to assist Feng. The exact list of people on the directing team will be unveiled Friday afternoon.

The gala was first held in 1983. The broadcast has an annual viewership of over 700 million viewers, making it one of the most viewed television events on the Chinese mainland and even in the world. The show features various acts, such as opera, acrobatics, dance, music and comedy.