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to some extent live up to in one's own right get across on the edge of one's seat |
Theaters of the Past
The Greek Theater
Theaters developed in many parts of Greece. Ancient Greek theaters were built in natural open air sites on conveniently shaped hills. This allowed a great mass of people to enjoy a show at a time. Due to this, actors placed emphasis on exaggerated (夸张的) action and speech. And colorful symbolic masks and costumes were used.
The Medieval Theater
The Medieval Theater started in churches. That is why medieval plays were about Bible stories. At first, it became a custom for priests (牧师) to act out brief scenes during Christmas and Easter. These acts attracted large crowds. Finally the church refused to allow priests to participate in any such events again, so ordinary people began these performances outside. Performances were set in the town square, with several stage settings around it.
The Elizabethan Theater
The England's theater developed rapidly in the years following the defeat of the Spanish Navy. The dominant feature of Elizabethan theater was the stage. It has three parts: the fore stage for outside scenes; the inner stage for scenes inside a building; an upper stage or balcony for various purposes. The reason for this design is that there were no scene changes, or breaks during the play. Very little scenery was used, so the actors had to create a scene through their voices and dialogues. This led to a more poetic script, and poets became the main source of script writing.
The Restoration Theater
Some of the plays told sad stories, but the majority of the plays were really funny. Many specialized machines were used to create the scene. The stage was a very clever idea, in that on the sides of the stage large back shutters (百叶窗) were painted with the scene.
Since the invention of Guitar Hero and similar computer games, it is no longer necessary to imagine what it would be like to play along with the Beatles — you can come together with them in the virtual (虚拟的) world.
Bill Wyman, former bass player in the Rolling Stones, has pointed out that music video games discourage kids from learning to play real instruments. My own experience suggests quite the opposite.
Last year, I bought Guitar Hero III for my 14-year-old son, Jack. Jack quickly mastered the process and entered a hard period of playing the game.
A few months later, while I was away on tour, a couple of his friends came around with a real electric guitar. Playing Guitar Hero had taught them how to play the track. Now they wanted to see if they could apply that to the real thing. Jack's friends taught him how to play his favorite songs using just his index finger (食指) on the bass string. He got it right away.
Guitar Hero had helped him over the first difficulty for guitar players — how to strum (拨弄) the strings with one hand while making chords (和弦) with the other. He never plays Guitar Hero now, preferring to rock in the garage with his mates.
Despite my attempts at getting him to learn an instrument, it was Guitar Hero that taught him the basics of playing and built up his confidence to the degree that he was able to make a recognizable sound the first time he played it.
So let's not complain about a game that encourages kids to become music fans and, in my son's case, it gives him the basic skills needed to learn how to play the guitar.
Earlier this year, artist Malik was about to post a selfie (自拍照) from the Brooklyn Bridge when he had the second thought. He wanted to share something different with his friends and the world.
Malik thought that the social media had become impersonal and he wanted to connect with people in a more meaningful way. Therefore, the Reading Project was born. He began leaving piles of his books in famous New York City locations with a card containing simple instructions put inside each one: take a book, read it and share your thoughts with the artist by email.
The piles of books themselves can be seen as works of art, and so is the process of sharing. Unlike many of the things we share today, he likes to keep the project off social media. To keep the project pure, he doesn't even turn around as he walks away once he has left a pile of books. When he has left them behind, he prefers email to be the only way that he learns what happens to them. The project has now taken him — and his books — all over the world, including London.
"I hope people pick them up and I also hope they read them and let me know their feelings on them. And even if they don't let me know, I just hope they will read the books," Malik said.
He has received thousands of messages from people in more than 30 countries all over the world. For Malik, books are meaningless and lifeless if they gather dust on a shelf and are never read again. He intends to carry on with the project for some time, with a plan to visit Brazil and then decides whether he will continue it or not.
Most of all, Malik loves the connection the books give him with strangers across the world, which is something that other posts could never achieve.
Minutes after the last movie ended yesterday at the Plaza Theater, employees were busy sweeping up popcorns and gathering coke cups. It was a scene that had been repeated many times in the theater's 75-year history. This time, however, the cleanup was a little different. As one group of workers carried out the rubbish, another group began removing seats and other theater equipment in preparation for the building's end.
The film classic The Last Picture Show was the last movie shown in the old theater. Though the movie is 30 years old, most of the 250 seats were filled with teary-eyed audience wanting to say good-bye to the old building. Theater owner Ed Bradford said he chose the movie because it seemed appropriate. The movie is set in a small town where the only movie theater is preparing to close down.
Bradford said that large modern theaters in the city made it impossible for the Plaza to compete. He added that the theater's location (位置) was also a reason. "This used to be the center of town," he said. "Now the area is mostly office buildings and warehouses."
Last week some city officials suggested the city might be interested in turning the old theater into a museum and public meeting place. However, these plans were abandoned because of financial problems. Bradford sold the building and land to a local development firm, which plans to build a shopping complex on the land where the theater is located.
The theater audience said good-bye as Bradford locked the doors for the last time. After 75 years the Plaza Theater had shown its last movie. The theater will be missed.
Everyone will suffer a loss — the loss of loved ones, good health or a job. The important thing is not to allow yourself to be trapped (困住). So can you actually do things to help yourselves through bad times? Here's how:
Anger is natural, but it can be released in a wholesome way. It can serve your recovery. You may think, "Things like this weren't supposed to happen to people like me." However, you have to realize that you have strong reasons to fight for your life.
Face the Challenge.
Instead of facing what has happened, many people try to look for an escape. A man who seldom touched a drink will begin hitting the bottle. The only thing that makes sense is to face up to your situation.
Get Out and Do.
You can join a support group, keep a journal, schedule a trip or do exercises, which make you feel better physically, and when you feel better physically, you feel better mentally.
Be Patient with Yourself.
Roughly, the terrible pain may last six months before you even start to feel better.A lot depends on your character, the support within your environment, and whether you get help and work on it. So, be easy on yourself. Always tell yourself: I'm still here, I've made it this far!
A. And it can be as long as a year, possibly two.
B. Understand Your Anger.
C. Avoid Getting Angry.
D. Yes, you can take charge of your own cure.
E. A woman who watched her weight will overeat.
F. They may start organizations, write books, and work for awareness.
G. Get yourself to concentrate on things other than your hurt.
I sat nervously and waited for Kathleen to speak. Being called to the human resources department is a little like being called to the principal's office. "Annie," she said, "A food bank that serves the elderly is asking for 1. I'd like you to organize the event and see it through." "Well, um, err…sure. I guess so." As I stuttered (结巴地说) through my2, all I could think was, "What? Why me?"
I walked back to my office wondering where to 3. This was a time4the economy was fading. The rise in unemployment forced many of my coworkers to5to survive. How could I ask them for more?
That evening I drove home, depressed. Then I remembered once my father was out of work. Mom wrote a note to Jim, the milkman, asking him not to6any more milk. Two days later Jim picked up the7and left four liters of milk. He left a message, 8, "Kids need milk." The milk delivery9as usual and Jim never collected a cent10us.
The memory of Jim's11fired my enthusiasm. Perhaps I'd be in for a pleasant surprise.
The next morning I12signs about our food drive all over the cafeteria and on every notice board I could find. Each sign said, "Food drive to support the poor elderly! 13of non-perishable (不易腐的) foods are greatly needed."
Within a few days I had to locate empty office space to14a large number of contributions we had15. One of my coworkers, Maggie, made the rounds with me every day from one department to another to pick up the canned goods and other16. Though over sixty, she17manage to push our food trolley (手推车) around like a woman half her age.
I asked her where she got all the enthusiasm. She said, "With the unemployment rate touching 10 percent, I can't think of a better way to be18for keeping our jobs19so many have lost theirs. Sure money is tight. But when isn't it? People need food."
As I listened to Maggie, the milkman's words20in my ears, "Kids need milk."
Three brothers, who worked for the same company, (receive) different wages due to their different attitudes towards their work, which shows right attitude is great help to one's life. Their different attitudes towards their work result in their different wages. From the story I can conclude that those take positive attitude towards work will (reward). Different attitudes lead to different results. Take Peter and Jack for example. They are both my classmates. Not only does Peter put his heart into study but he is also (help) both to teachers and students. So he has become a top student in our class, even in the grade. With his diligence and 6. (concentrate), he is bound to succeed in (enter) his ideal university. However, Jack never cares about his study and he is addicted to playing games. He turns deaf ear to the teachers' advice. As a result, he falls far behind others in his study. In (I) opinion, attitude is everything. No matter what you do, you must do it well even if you may fail many (time). Sooner or later you will be rewarded for your positive attitude towards your work or life.
One weekend in July, Jane and her husband, Tom had driven three hours to camp overnight by a lake in the forest. Unfortunately, on the way an unpleasant subject came up and they started to quarrel. By the time they reached the lake, Jane was so angry that she said to Tom "I'm going to find a better spot for us to camp" and walked away.
With no path to follow, Jane just walked on for quite a long time. After she had climbed to a high place, she turned around, hoping to see the lake. To her surprise, she saw nothing but forest and, far beyond, a snowcapped mountain top. She suddenly realized that she was lost.
"Tom!" she cried. "Help!"
No reply. If only she had not left her mobile phone in that bag with Tom. Jane kept moving, but the farther she walked, the more confused she became. As night was beginning to fall, Jane was so tired that she had to stop for the night. Lying awake in the dark, Jane wanted very much to be with Tom and her family. She wanted to hold him and tell him how much she loved him.
Jane rose at the break of day, hungry and thirsty. She could hear water trickling (滴落) somewhere at a distance. Quickly she followed the sound to a stream. To her great joy, she also saw some berry bushes. She drank and ate a few berries. Never in her life had she tasted anything better. Feeling stronger now, Jane began to walk along the stream and hope it would lead her to the lake.
As she picked her way carefully along the stream, Jane heard a helicopter. Is that for me? Unfortunately, the trees made it impossible for people to see her from above. A few minutes later, another helicopter flew overhead. Jane took off her yellow blouse, thinking that she should go to an open area and flag them if they came back again.
注意：
1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2）应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph l:
But no more helicopters came and it was getting dark again……
Paragraph 2:
It was daybreak when Jane woke up.……
