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The theatre
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| Earlinde | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 15:26 | Сообщение # 1 |
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| In this toppic I offer you to post words, expressons and topic-texts about theatre.
Matherials: 1. А. Г. Елисеева, И. A. Ершова "ENGLISH WORDS AND HOW TO USE THEM".
2. Сосис "Английский язык".
3. A.L. Diment "BRUSH UP YOUR TALK"
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| Earlinde | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 15:27 | Сообщение # 2 |
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| Text GOING TO THE THEATRE
Going to the theatre is a way of spending an evening which may be at the same time most entertaining and educative.1 Despite competition from the cinema, wireless and television, the theatre still plays an important part in the entertainment of the average Englishman.
In London there are theatres for all tastes: some people prefer musical comedy, and shows of this kind, with their catchy tunes, are very popular. Variety shows, in which actors entertain the audience with sentimental and comic performan¬ces or skits on social or political life, also draw full houses and greatly influence the artistic tastes of the public. In this kind of entertainment the role of the master of ceremonies (or chair¬man) is very important. He announces the different items on the programme, introduces the actors and maintains the atten¬tion and interest of the spectators.
Those who do not care for musical comedy or variety will find other shows to their taste. Some theatres stage modern plays; Shakespeare and other classics are played mostly at Old Vic; the Royal Opera, formerly Covent Garden, shows opera and ballet.
Seats in theatres where dramatic works of real educational1 value are played and where the standard of acting is high are expensive. This makes the theatrical art in Britain more or less the monopoly of the well-to-do and better educated classes.
As a rule, performances start (or begin) at about half past seven and run2 for three hours or more, including about an hour for intervals between acts. There are sometimes matinees in the afternoon, but most spectators prefer evening shows.
Seats are booked (or reserved) beforehand either at the box-office (or booking office) or by phone. If all the seats are not booked up (or so'd out) you can get tickets at the box-office just before the show begins; otherwise, the sold-out sign3 is posted over the box-office.
The best and most expensive seats in the auditorium (or house) are the orchestra stalls, the boxes, and the dress-circle. From these scats you can get a good view of the stage. The view is not so good from the cheaper seats — the pit and the gallery or "the gods." Spectators are not allowed to stand in the gangway (or aisle) during the performance.
When you arrive at the theatre you leave your hat and coat at the cloakroom, where the attendant can also provide you with opera-glasses, if you wish. An usher shows you to your place and sells you a programme, which tells you the story of the play that is on that evening and gives the names of the actors who will act the different parts (or roles). Vocabulary 1. to run — said of a single show — to last
2. the sold-out sign — a notice bearing the words "sold-out" posted over the box-office when all tickets are sold —аншлаг.
But note: Спектакль шел с аншлагами. — The show was played to full houses.
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| Earlinde | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 15:33 | Сообщение # 3 |
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| Text WITHOUT AN AUDIENCE
Every child longs to act: a love of acting reveals itself from the earliest age.
The urge to act underlies most children's games, where they show power of observation, of imagination and of ex-pression that grown-up actors envy.
Little girls show remarkable acting ability as they put their dolls to bed, take them to the doctor and scold them for being naughty.
If you ever manage to get into a children's game, which is not an easy thing for a grown-up to do, you will be aston-ished by the power of a child's imagination.
I, of course, went through this phase of pure, childish acting. And to this day I remember many games of my ear-liest years; I remember not only what they were about, but also the inner truth of what I acted.
But, however truthfully and well children may perform in their acting games, and generally speaking they act very well indeed, there is not one of them you can be sure will make an actor, that is a person who can preserve his inner seriousness and belief in the truth of his acting in the pres-ence of an audience. Only in the presence of the spectator does the art of acting achieve its full meaning.
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| Earlinde | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 15:36 | Сообщение # 4 |
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| Dialogues AT THE BOX-OFFICE
A. Have you got any seats for Sunday?
B. Matinee or evening performance?
A. Matinee, please. I want two stalls, if you've got any.
B. Yes, you can have two in the middle of Row 12.
A. Thank you. I think they'll do very well. How much are they?
B. Twelve-and-six each ,,. that's twenty-five shillings. AT THE CLOAK-ROOM
A. We'd better hurry up. The bell is ringing. There is nothing more unpleasant than to have to disturb people sitting in their seats.
B. But we've got plenty of time. It's only 7.15. It must be the first bell. Look, there are lots of people in the cloak-room and no one seems to be in a hurry.
A. All the better. I hate arriving after the curtain has gone up.
B. Let's get a pair of opera-glasses; our seats are rather a long way from the stage, so we shall need them.
ATTENDANT. May I see your tickets, please. Dress-circle, Row 4, seats 9 and 10. This way, please. Would you like a programme?
B. Yes, please. How much?
ATTENDANT. One rouble. Thank you.
A. How full the house is tonight. Not a single vacant seat. ABOUT THE THEATRE
Mrs. S.: Charles, we've been in London over a week and we haven't done any shows yet! Don't you think it's time we went to one?
Mr. S.: Certainly, my dear. What would you like to see? Opera, musical comedy, review, variety show, or a comedy?
Mrs. S.: Well I think that as the opera season will soon be over we might go and see "Carmen" tomorrow if you can get scats.
Mr. S.: What part of the house do you prefer? Gallery, pit, upper circle, dress-circle, stalls, or a box? Mrs. S. Well, if you can get dress-circle seats that will do nicely. I suppose they're fairly expensive?
Mr. S.: I should say they are. All theatres are expensive nowadays. I'll phone for seats. Mrs. S. I do hope you'll be able to get them. "Carmen" is my favourite opera. (After Brush Up Your English) AFTER THE THEATRE
A. Oh, hello! Where have you been?
B. To the theatre. I was lucky enough to get a ticket just before the performance.
A. Which theatre did you go to?
B. The Parnassus ; "Macbeth" is on there, you know.
A. Is it? It's been on for a long time, hasn't it! I thought it had been taken off.
B. No, it's had such a reception that it just can't be taken off now. People still want to see it and there is a queue outside the theatre every night in spite of the sold-out sign.
A. Well, what did you think of it?
B. I thought it was just splendid. I enjoyed every minute of it. It's one of the best productions I've ever seen, the performances are absolutely first-class. The acting is so natural and true-to-life that you forget you are watching a play.
A. Are there no bad or even mediocre performances?
B. Certainly no bad ones. Brian Waine and Alice Dunn in the leading roles are superb. The spectators brought the house down after every scene they appeared in. I don't believe I've ever seen such an-enthusiastic audience. They applauded as I had never seen them applaud before.
A. So you're not sorry you went?
B. I should think not! I've never enjoyed a show more.
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| Earlinde | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 16:04 | Сообщение # 5 |
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| Texts PROMPTING
The prompter should be present at all rehearsals in order to know exactly how the play goes. Oddly enough, an actor nearly always "dries up" at the same place, and such places should be marked with a danger signal in the prompt copy. Prompting at a first performance is a full-time job, and the prompter should have no other duties to distract him. It is usually enough to supply the actor with the missing words, and the prompt must be so timed that the prompter's voice is heard exactly on the syllable where it is wanted. The prompter can usually tell from the actor's face when he needs prompting. The experienced actor will throw a glance at the prompt-corner when he wants a line.
Prompting is a difficult and rather a thankless task but interesting, and a good prompter is a godsend to a company.
(From The Amateur Actor, by F. Mackenzie) COMEDY PARTS
Comedy, especially farcical comedy, is quite the most difficult thing a young actor can attempt. It requires a partic-ularly skilled technique, which can only be acquired by years of constant training.
Light comedy parts are difficult because they are all in one key, and within the limits of that key the actor has to find range and variety. Lines must be poured forth with speed and apparent inconsequence, yet comedy points, as fine as needles, must be made, touched in passing, lightly but definitely. This requires the skill of long experience. Timing is everything. It is said that Mr. Lynn has his business so exactly timed that when at one point he lights a cigarette, the matchbox must be placed in a certain position, to an inch, and the match he is to use must be ready sticking out of the box, otherwise his timing would be upset by several seconds.
The playing of comedy demands considerable command over the audience. The comedian must know how to get a laugh, and how to kill one; when to expect it, and how long to wait for it before resuming; when it is legitimate to hold up the action by "comic business," and when it is not.
The actor must, moreover, in comedy more than in any other type of play, consider his fellow-actors and play up to them; avoid killing their laughs, or help them to get them.
(From An Amateur Actor, by F. Mackenzie) CHARACTER PARTS
To a great extent the actor builds up his part from observation. As he goes about his daily occupations he is consciously or subconsciously finding models from everyday life. He will study the characteristics and mannerisms of the people with whom he comes into contact; he will watch people in the street, in trains and buses, in shops, at public gatherings, he will notice the way they walk, the movements of head and hands, how they speak, the sound of their voices, the expression on their faces, both permanent and momentary, he will take this peculiarity from one person and that from another—anything that may help him to give individuality to the character he is to play. Not only will he seek to imitate and reproduce superficial and physical characteristics, but he will try to get inside the minds of his models and understand their thoughts and the circumstances which make them behave the way they do. He will exercise all his sympathy and intuition in this, and, with the aid of his imagination will build up a complex character that is utterly different from his own. If possible, he will observe people's reaction in emotion, fear, excitement, disappoint-ment, joy, or sorrow, and notice particularly how their voice and movements are affected.
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| Earlinde | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 16:43 | Сообщение # 6 |
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| Text THE CLASSIC CHINESE THEATRE
A newcomer in the Chinese Theatre finds that what goes on around the play is more intriguing than the stage play itself, which he does not understand. But he can understand the inquisitive faces peering through the back curtain, and the quiet children draped on all sides of the stage in as many positions, or those young or old who push their ways in front of the wings and stand in rapt attention as unaware of the audience as the actors are of them.
The musicians share the stage with the actors as do their guests and offspring. When they light their cigarettes or converse, the newcomer sees it as part of the play. The most impressive characters who divert the attention are the pro-perty men, the ubiquitous blue-gowned figures who quietly do their jobs as if they were invisible or transparent. They refresh the singer with a pot of tea; they toss the cushion to an about-to-kneel actor. A discarded sword is caught agilely, head-dress is adjusted, a chair is turned into a prison gate, a canopy properly placed, a curtain swung. Sometimes they are a part of the act, tossing flames into the air, or helping a "dead" actor to exit.
The newcomer sees teapots framing the stage apron as strangely shaped footlights. He sees the clashing colours of the tied curtains and the Chinese character writing designing the front walls of the theatre as decoration. He sees every-thing but the play. But when he does begin to watch the play, when he inquires into the gesture of the actor, learns the importance of the painted faces and ordered significance of the costumes, then the surrounding distractions fade out and he is completely startled when a newer newcomer comments on those extraneous elements, for he has begun to take for granted, as everyone does, the arch of the proscenium.
But never will the activities within the boundaries of the stage become a taken-for-granted matter, for each evening's attendance extends the scope of one's appreciation. In a single night one can be impressed by the variety of styles and stories that may span the centuries. One might see one play in which the pantomime is so realistic that it transcends any natural boundary; the washing of hands, the sewing of a shoe, or the flirtation of a newly-met couple is a language familiar to anyone.
He probably would see a dramatic play: a defeated hero accompanying his actions with song or speech, with formal gestures stylized to the degree at which they become a "dance" —trembling fingers at the chest, staggering steps taken on the knees, a complete somersault with a final position on the back for despair. This is true "expressionistic" acting, where the gestures take the place of the words in awakening the emotional responses of the audiences.
He would experience a play of "action" in which the movement is the body of the play, the story being only the frame. He might see this first evening a white-costumed pink-and-white-faced young man elegantly expressing his prowess in terms of pure action, the designs and body tension, rhythm and abstract arrangements being of "dance" nature. The Chinese call it action and so it is, because it actively expresses a state of mind. It is also a pure dance because the form is so finished in structure as to be completely expressive of the concept which inspires the action. It can therefore be called "Dance-Action."
Although the plays are generally divided into Civil and Military, the subdivisions are many, and are not, as ours are, categorized as "Comedy" or "Tragedy." In each classification there may be plays with sad or happy endings, but these emotions are not the central motivation of the plays. The fact that they are historical, legendary, mythical, seasonal, or festival, romantic, satirical, ethical, and sociological is the point. All may contain fanciful notions and mythological concepts. Each may use diverse acting styles: realistic, expressionistic or abstract. But all are constructed so that movement, speech and song, sound and music are fused into a balanced unity, resulting in a unique type of theatre— called Classic Chinese.
(The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, Vol. XV, p. 2, Dec. 1956)
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| aquamarine | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 22:48 | Сообщение # 7 |
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| Dialogues - Are you free tonight?
- Why? Are you going to invite me somewhere?
- Yes, I've got tickets for "King Liar".
- It's the first night, isn't it? How did you manage to get seats?
- Don't askme questions, just say wheather you're going or not.
- Of course, I am. How can I miss a chance like that? - Is this seat vacant?
- No, I'm afraid it's taken.
- So sorry, I thought I was lucky.
- I don't think there's a single seat vacant today.
- You're right. The house is packed, though, the play has had a long run.
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| aquamarine | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 23:02 | Сообщение # 8 |
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| Vocabulary 1. To invite smb. to the theatre (cinema, etc.) пригласить кого-либо в театр (кино и т.д.)
2. To refuse smb. - отказать кому-либо
3. To accept the invitation - принять приглашение
4. In the stalls - в партере
5. The light went down - огни погасли
6. The curtain rose (fell) - занавес поднялся (опустился)
7. To play yhe leading part - играть главную роль
8. To get seats (tickets) - достать билеты
9. A storm of applause - гром аплодисментов
10. The first night -премьера
11. The seat is vacant (taken) - место свободно (занято)
12. The house is packed - театр переполнен
13. To have a long run - давно идти (о пьесе, о фильме, спектакле и т.д.)
14. extra ticket - лишний билет
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| aquamarine | Дата: Среда, 28.11.2007, 23:10 | Сообщение # 9 |
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| The names of a few operas The Queen of Spades - Пиковая дама
Eugene Onegin - Евгений Онегин
Madam Butterfly - Мадам Баттерфляй The names of some ballets The Sleeping Beauty - Спящая красавица
Swan Lake - Лебединое Озеро
The Nutcracker - Щелкунчик
Cinderella - Золушка
Romeo and Juliet - Ромео и Джульетта
Raymond - Раймонда The names of some plays Macbeth - Макбетт
King Lear - Король Лир
Othello - Отелло
The Taming of the Shrew - Укрощение строптивой
Much Ado About Nothing - Много шума из ничего
Woe From Wit - Горе от ума
Inspector-General - Ревизор
Crime and Punishment - Преступление и наказание
The Low Depth - На дне
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| Earlinde | Дата: Четверг, 29.11.2007, 17:28 | Сообщение # 10 |
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| Words and Expressions billboard - a placard, notice, giving information about a play
box-office - an office for booking seats in a theatre
stage - a raised platform in a theatre where the actors appear
the stalls - seats in the part of a theatre nearest to the stage
the gallery - the highest balcony where the cheapest seats are placed
cloak-room - a place where hats and coats may be left
check - a piece of wood or metal with a number on it given in return for a hat or a coat
cast - a set in actors in play
play-bill - programme
the leading role - the main roul
rehearsal - a triel performance of a play it stands out in my memory quite vividly - I remember it very well
matinee performance - an afternoon performance
"House full" - there are no more tickets left
usher - a person, who shows people to their seats
the house burt into applause - зрители зааплодировали
to get curtain calls - быть вызванным на сцену
The performance was a great success with the public. - Everybody liked the performance very much permanent staff - постоянная группа
show - a performance
it draws the audience and pays its way - many spectators come to the theatre
peculiarity - quality
spectators - people watching the performance
the pit - seats in the theatre behind the stalls
queue - a line of people waiting for their turn
the tier - ярус
the dress-circle - бельэтаж
stage manager - режиссер
prompter - суфлер
ticket-taker - a person who examines our tickets at the entrance to a theatre tenporarily - lasting for a time
image - образ
to share - to give away a part of smth.
to alter - to change
tenant - one who occupies land or a house
to be in the title-role - to play the leading role piano - пианино, pianist
violin - скрипка, violinist
cello - виоланчель, celloist
guitar - гитара
orchestra - оркестр
choir - хор
aria - ария
turns to show - номера программы
to sing out of tune - фальшивить
to sing (dance) to the accompaniment of ... петь (танцевать) под акомпонимент ...
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