Chinese storytelling master Shan Tianfang dies at 84

One of China's top pingshu masters, Shan Tianfang, died at the age of 84 in Beijing on Tuesday.

The traditional Chinese art form, pingshu, or storytelling, was born in the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and has been popular with audiences mostly in northern China.

With a simple backdrop - usually a pair of screen doors, a table, a folding fan and a block of wood (known as xingmu) - Shan won a large base of enthusiastic fans for his solid techniques and improvisation describing the scenes in the book in vivid and captivating ways, like movie clips.