1 . Teaching comedy is a delicate craft that Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Teaching Artists handle with expertise. Sabrina Mandell, specializing in clowning and physical comedy, believes in starting with examples of what she finds funny, helping students understand humor and its subtlety (微妙之处). She emphasizes the importance of discovering what works for individuals rather than specifying a right way.
Overcoming fear is crucial in comedy, with Mark Jaster noting that comedians must be willing to push beyond social norms. Sabrina also advocates opening up emotionally, recognizing the closeness of laughter and tears. After all, pushing students to face fear head-on can tap into their full comedic potential.
Precision is also essential in comedy, requiring crisp, clean, and well-timed performance. Jim Gagne emphasizes the need for precision in comedy compared to the flexibility allowed in drama. Teaching comedic timing is challenging, with some students naturally possessing the talent, while others need more guidance to refine this essential skill. Jim, however, believes it can be developed through awareness, practice, and thorough exploration.
Play and fun are crucial in teaching comedy. Sabrina emphasizes the importance of rediscovering the joy of play. Mark envisions a comedy lab where exploring its mysteries is as significant as its performance.
Despite the desire for laughs, teachers emphasize the importance of storytelling within comedic scenes. Jim provides a valuable insight: “In drama, you throw the dishes down; in comedy, you throw them up.” This comparison underscores that comedy demands a different approach, one that is more lighthearted and humorous. Nevertheless, the ultimate goal is to truly engage the audience and genuinely make them laugh.
1. What does Sabrina Mandell find important when teaching comedy?A.Conveying her sense of humor to students. | B.Prioritizing storytelling over humor. |
C.Focusing on creating physical humor. | D.Inspiring students to explore their humor. |
A.fear is one of the primary sources of humor | B.comedians need to go beyond social conventions |
C.laughter and tears enhance the comedic effect | D.it enables people to unlock comedic potential |
A.He considers it merely a natural gift. |
B.He emphasizes precision more in comedy than in drama. |
C.He thinks teaching precision requires a sense of timing. |
D.He believes precision in comedy is similar to flexibility in drama. |
A.Comedy aims to find out mysteries. |
B.Comedy requires a serious and dramatic approach. |
C.Comedy brings the audience new inspirations. |
D.Comedy can be taught through play and exploration. |
WIND ON THE HILL
No one can tell me,
Nobody knows,
Where the wind comes from,
Where the wind goes.
It’s flying from somewhere
As fast as it can,
I couldn’t keep up with it,
Not if I ran.
But if I stopped holding
The string of my kite,
It would blow with the wind
For a day and a night.
And then when I found it,
Wherever it blew,
I should know that the wind
Had been going there too.
So then I could tell them
Where the wind goes ...
But where the wind comes from
Nobody knows.
A.A.Milne
DREAM
Hold fast to dreams,
For if dreams die
Life is a brokenwinged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams,
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
Langston Hughes
A MATCH
If love were what the rose is,
And I were the leaf,
Our lives would grow together
In sad or singing weather,
Brown fields or flowerful closes,
Green pleasure or grey grief;
If love were what the rose is,
And I were like the leaf.
A.C.Swinburne
1. According to the poem Wind on the hill,what is the possible way to find out where the wind goes?A.To be told by someone else. |
B.To find the place where the kite drops. |
C.To keep up with the wind day and night. |
D.To hold the string of the kite and run with it. |
A.The writer eventually found out where the wind came from. |
B.The writer succeeded in finding a way of knowing where the wind went. |
C.The poem Dream doesn't rhyme at all. |
D.Aphoristic rhetoric is made full use of in the poem A Match. |
A.Wind on the hill | B.A Match |
C.Dream | D.Dream & A Match |
A.Contest. | B.Opponent. |
C.Partner. | D.Matchstick. |
3 . Harry woke at five o’clock the next morning and was too excited and nervous to go back to sleep. He got up and pulled on his jeans because he didn’t want to walk into the station in his wizard’s robes——he’d change on the train. He checked his Hogwarts list again to make sure he had everything he needed, saw that Hedwig was safely shut in her cage and paced the room, waiting for the Dursleys to get up. Two hours later, Harry’s huge, heavy truck had been loaded into the Dursley’s car, Aunt Petunia had talked Dudley into sitting next to Harry and they had set off.
They reached Kind’s Cross at half past ten. Uncle Vernon dumped Harry’s trunk on to a trolley and wheeling it into the station for him. Harry thought this was strangely kind until Uncle Vernon stopped dead, facing the platforms with a nasty grin on his face.
‘Well, there you are, boy. Platform nine - platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don’t seem to have built it yet, do they?’
He was quite right, of course. There was a big plastic number nine over one platform and a big plastic number ten over the one next to it, and in the middle, nothing at all.
‘Have a good term,’ said Uncle Vernon with an even nastier smile. He left without another word. Harry turned and saw the Dursleys drive away. All three of them were laughing. Harry’s mouth went rather dry. What on earth was he going to do? He was starting to attract a lot of funny looks, because of Hedwig. He’d have to ask someone.
He stopped a passing guard, but didn’t dare mention platform nine and three-quarters. The guard had never heard of Hogwarts and when Harry couldn’t even tell him what part of the country it was in, he started to get annoyed, as though Harry was being stupid on purpose. Getting desperate, Harry asked for the train that left at eleven o’clock, but the guard said there wasn’t one. In the end the guard strode away, muttering about time-wasters. Harry was now trying hard not to panic. According to the large clock over the arrival boards, he had ten minutes left to get on the train to Hogwarts and he had no idea how to do it; he was stranded in the middle of a station with a trunk he could hardly lift, a pocket full of wizard money and a large owl.
Hagrid must have forgotten to tell him something you had to do, liking tapping the third brick on the left to get into Diagon Alley. He wondered if he should get out his wand and start tapping the ticket box between platforms nine and ten.
Quoted from JK. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
1. Harry woke up so early in the morning probably because he _________.A.wanted to try on his new jeans | B.needed to put Hedwig back in her cage |
C.was asked to get prepared beforehand | D.looked forward to his new life of Hogwarts |
A.rage | B.fear | C.regret | D.complain |
A.Uncle Vernon had always treated Harry kindly and cared very much for him. |
B.Harry arrived at the train station an hour before the scheduled departure time. |
C.The Dursleys were happy to get rid of Harry and see him stuck in embarrassment. |
D.Harry completely forgot how to find the way to Platform nine and three-quarters. |
4 . “John Cotter’s Losing Music is a powerful addition to the classic memoir (自传),” said Gretchen Cherington in The Millions. The first-time author has a strange disease that causes severe hearing loss, and Cotter shows well how destructive (破坏性的) the condition can be. Music first began disappearing, then the sound of the ocean. Beginning when he was 30, a ringing in his ears came and went, sometimes becoming so loud that it was painful. As his condition got worse significantly, he found how the loss of normal hearing separated him quickly from the whole world of pleasure. “The feeling is like losing life’s colour.” After detailing how he fell into complete despair, his “hard-hitting, beautiful, deep-going” book also reveals how he managed to rediscover a certain sense of satisfaction again.
“The most memorable sections in Losing Music are about Cotter’s daily struggles” said Lisa Zeidner in The Washington Post. As a poet and essayist who was working as a part-time writing professor when his hearing troubles began, he is lyrical about sounds we take for granted: rain beating windows, old-fashioned heating hissing (嘶嘶响), a cat drinking water. Still, “he reserves his most passionate writing for music,” providing poetically precise descriptions of much of the music he has loved, and connecting the loss of those experiences to the loneliness of being deaf. By 33, his hearing was gone. Hearing aids and medication helped begin a partial improvement.
“Cotter ultimately finds the best hope for a life without music: to get right with silence,” said Melissa Holbrook Pierson in The Wall Street Journal. There can be no happy ending in a book about hearing loss, but in writing it, he “turned difficulty into quiet success.” Losing Music comes closest to capturing what’s behind music “by nearly being music itself.” Even though his hearing has failed him, “evidence that Cotter’s ear is still keen for the beautiful tune of language sings from every page.”
1. What do we know about Cotter from Paragraph 1?A.Losing Music is his first work. | B.He knows well about his illness. |
C.The ringing in his ears was like music. | D.He drives away loneliness by writing. |
A.His keen sense of music. | B.His position as a professor. |
C.His daily hardship and effort. | D.His detailed style of writing, |
A.He tries his best to cure it. | B.He comes to terms with it. |
C.He ignores the inconvenience of it. | D.He collects evidence about it. |
A.A diary entry. | B.A book review. |
C.A news report. | D.A biography. |
5 . Anthony Wood remembers sitting in the classroom one snowy morning as his teacher eyed the flakes(雪花) flying outside the window. “Please boys and girls”, she said, “pray that it stops snowing.” How little she grasped the mind of children, Mr. Wood observes, “We were praying,alright -- praying that it would snow-until June.”
Everyone knows children loves snow. Mr. Wood’s new book is meant for adults who remain passionate. It is less a systematic history than a discussion through various snow-related subjects -- beginning with the snowflake itself, which the author describes poetically as “the DNA of God”. Monster snowstorms interest Mr. Wood, such as the great white hurricane of 1888, during which hundreds of people in the north-eastern United States died of severe coldness. Winter storms that prevented the transportation from functioning normally were disasters for cities like New York and Philadelphia. But snow also contributed to the development of subway systems.
His chapters touch on the impact of unpredictable snowfall on the water crisis in California and on winter fun everywhere. He offers some frustratingly disconnected guesses about how climate change will alter future snowfalls. The short answer is that there will probably be more snow in places where the amount of water in the air increases, and less where temperatures become too high to keep it.
And he reflects, if briefly, on snow’s delights and unusual charm. Why do people either love it or hate it? Many long for it, Mr Wood proposes, because of the splendid isolation(隔离) that it brings. It can direct attention inward, and help people return to themselves.
1. Why is Anthony Wood’s memory mentioned in Paragraph 1?A.To introduce the topic. | B.To make a comparison. |
C.To draw a conclusion. | D.To take an example. |
A.It focuses on the history of snow. |
B.It explains why children loves now. |
C.It covers a wide range of topics about snow. |
D.It only talks about the disaster caused by snow. |
A.Pessimistic. | B.Unclear. | C.Objective. | D.Critical. |
A.A biography of Anthony Wood. | B.An essay on climate change. |
C.A fiction about snow. | D.A review of a book. |
6 . If you like to laugh your head off, don’t miss “Mark Twain Live”, starring Mike Randall. Luckily, it will make a much anticipated return. This year, Randall is celebrating his 50th year of performing in his one-man show that brings America’s greatest author and humorist to life.
The bond between Mike Randall (born in 1953) and Mark Twain began when Randall started playing Mark Twain at the age of 17. At that time, Randall was a student at Rosary Hill College. At age 20, he performed at the State Department in Washington, D. C. , where John F. Kennedy gave his State of the Union address. And one year later, he brought his interpretation of the “Celebrated Humorist” to New York City.
Randall is the only Mark Twain impersonator (扮演者) to be formally acknowledged by the Daughters of the American Revolution for his impressive performance and the only Mark Twain actor to be a member of the famous National Speakers Association. “Mark Twain Live” is supported by the Mark Twain Museum of Buffalo. Randall is also the “official Mark Twain” of the Huck Finn Jubilee (an annual event), and the Annual Mark Twain Birthday Bash & Symposium.
In five decades of “being” Mark Twain, Randall has given more than 2,000 performances. To transform himself into Twain, Randall needs to spend over three hours at the make-up table. Removing all the make-up is more time-consuming and painful. But he never complains and tries to do well in every performance. Audiences nationwide agree that watching “Mark Twain Live” is a delightful experience, which brings Randall much motivation.
Randall is also brilliant in other areas. He recalled the person that was supposed to report the weather called in sick, so the director of WKBW-TV (a TV station in Buffalo) insisted he do it. “I have no choice but to accept the challenge,” Randall said. Afterwards, he signed a long-term contract with WKBW-TV. To do his job better, he received the approval from the National Weather Association. Also as an award-winning dramatist, Randall’s dramas have been produced at Buffalo’s Alleyway Theatre.
1. What effect would “Mark Twain Live” have on audiences?A.Calming | B.Amusing | C.Heartbreaking | D.Embarrassing |
A.He interviewed John F. Kennedy. |
B.He learned acting at Rosary Hill College. |
C.He gave a speech at the State Department. |
D.He impersonated Mark Twain in New York. |
A.To encourage Randall to host more shows |
B.To recall Mark Twain’s impact on Americans |
C.To highlight Randall’s reputation in the art field |
D.To indicate Randall’s special bond with Buffalo |
A.Confident and caring | B.Open-minded and frank |
C.Cautious and independent | D.Committed and strong-willed |
A.A forecaster | B.ATV director | C.A theatre operator | D.A drama reviewer |
7 . My Favorite Sweater
By Bonnie Highsmith Taylor
My favorite sweater grew too small.
I love that sweater best of all.
My grandma made it when I was three.
She made that sweater just for me.
I picked the yarn (纱线), a special blue.
The color of bluebells (风铃草), wet with dew (露珠).
When I was three I was very small.
But now I’m five and much too tall.
I have a new jacket now that’s green.
So I gave my sweater to our cat Queen.
Queen just gave birth to kittens in the shed (小屋).
My favorite sweater is now their bed.
1. Who is the writer of the poem?A.The grandma. | B.Miss Taylor. | C.A kitten. | D.Queen. |
A.3. | B.4. | C.5. | D.6. |
A.5. | B.3. | C.4. | D.6. |
A.a kind of food | B.baby cats |
C.a kind of drink | D.a bed for a baby |
8 . Even though it’s been more than 30 years, Brendan Slocumb still feels the heartbreak of his stolen violin.
In his senior year of high school, Slocumb’s family found their home ransacked (洗劫) after a trip abroad. Slocumb, who had been playing the violin since he was nine, went immediately to the hiding spot under his bed. “I looked. My instrument was gone. I looked again. It was gone,” he said.
The stolen violin is one of many life experiences Slocumb drew upon to write his book, The Violin Conspiracy. It tells the story of Ray McMillan, a gifted violinist whose family violin is stolen just before one of the world-class music competitions.
Born in California, Slocumb was raised in Fayetteville, N.C., and began playing the violin through a public school music program. For both Slocumb and his character Ray, the violin was a means to get away from a difficult childhood and a ticket to college and a promising job. After graduating from college with a degree in music education, Slocumb has taught music to students from primary through high school for more than 20 years.
Writing the book was a chance to celebrate Slocumb’s success and honor the people who helped him along the way. In the book, Ray’s Grandma Nora—his first supporter—is named after Slocumb’s grandmother. And Ray’s mentor (导师) Janice is based on Dr. Rachel Vetter Huang, Slocumb’s college teacher, whom he calls “a life-saving force”.
The Violin Conspiracy has been praised for its lively descriptions. After it came on the market in 2022, thank-yous poured in. Slocumb heard from many Black musicians who said “This is a story that I’ve been carrying along as well. I experienced the exact same things Ray has gone through in the story, and noon would believe me. Now it’s out there in the world to see.”
1. Why was Slocumb heartbroken about his stolen violin?A.The violin cost too much. | B.He got the violin on his birthday. |
C.The violin mattered to him. | D.He bought the violin from abroad. |
A.She gave Slocumb much support. | B.She wrote books in her spare time. |
C.She had saved Slocumb’s life. | D.She taught music in a high school. |
A.They placed their orders in a hurry. |
B.They faced an impossible situation. |
C.They were worried about the coming life. |
D.They were thankful for Slocumb’s work. |
A.A children’s story. | B.A news report. |
C.A book review. | D.A lesson plan. |
9 . The Door-to-Door Bookstore, whose author is Carsten Henn, translated from the German by Melody Shaw, is an undoubtedly emotional, inspiring novel about friendships between generations developed through books.
Carl Kollhoff, a 72-year-old bookseller in southern Germany, is beloved among his customers for finding just the right books for them. But his role is threatened when a new boss is determined to push out the star employee.
One of the limited highlights of Carl’s life is to deliver books every evening to a handful of shut-in customers. The selections are made by their stated preferences—for happy endings, tragedy, philosophical works and so on. Trouble happens when a pretty wise (and a little annoying) motherless 9-year-old girl tags along with him on his rounds. She decides Carl is not actually giving his customers what they really need, and comes up with a plan to correct this.
Like Carl’s backpack, Henn manages to fill his novel with books without weighing it down. Chapter titles suggest that classics are involved: The Stranger, The Red and the Black, Great Expectations. Carl, who is terrible with names, assigns a literary character to each customer—Mr. Darcy, Mrs. Longstocking, The Reader—to help him keep them straight.
We gradually come to know these townsfolk: the abused wife, and the ambitious writer with the soothing voice who is paid to read classics to cigar factory workers.
The Door-to-Door Bookstore is also filled with amusing observations. Carl divides readers into hares (野兔), who race through books; fish, who allow books to carry them along on their current; curious lapwings (鸟头麦鸡), who jump ahead to see the ending first; and tortoises, who fall asleep each night after a single page and take months to get through a book, having to turn back repeatedly to check what they’ve forgotten.
Readers will have fun finding themselves in these pages.
1. Where is the text most probably taken from?A.A review of a book. | B.An essay on literature classics. |
C.An introduction to a bookstore. | D.A biography of Carl Kollhoff. |
A.The takeover of a family business by a young girl. |
B.The friendship between Carl and a 9-year-old girl. |
C.Carl’s struggle to find the right books for his customers. |
D.The competition among different bookstores in Germany. |
A.To compare the book with them. | B.To stress the importance of them. |
C.To help readers understand the book. | D.To show their popularity. |
A.Readers will relate to the characters and situations in the novel. |
B.Readers will find satisfaction in correctly guessing the endings of the books. |
C.Readers will enjoy the different ways people read books. |
D.Readers will be amused by the diverse personalities of the customers. |
Like Father, Like Son
(The living room. Friday night. A table and two chairs at front centre. Grandfather and Father, seated at the table, are playing chess.)
Grandfather:And...I win!
(Son enters room.)
Father:Not again! Oh look, here comes my boy. How are you, son?
Son:(nervously approaching the table) Erm... Dad, can we talk?
Father:Sure! You know you can always turn to your dad for a chat.
Son:OK. Here it is. I’ve decided not to go to university. I want to focus on my band and have a career in music when I leave school.
Father:(raising his voice in surprise) You can’t be serious! What about your future career as a lawyer?!
Son:I knew you’d say that. You just assume I want to be a lawyer, but that’s only because you are a lawyer.
Father:What’s wrong with being a lawyer? Lawyers help people and are respected by others.
Son:Yes, but I’m not interested in law. I want to work in a studio, not a court.
Grandfather:(looking at Father) Calm down. OK?
Father:(ignoring Grandfather’s words) Stop daydreaming ! Playing in a band is not a job.
Son:Of course it is! The music industry is developing fast now. Making music is a job.
Grandfather:(stepping between Father and Son and raising his voice) Hey! I told you to calm down, both of you!
Father:But I told him to study something useful at university!
Grandfather:(laughing) Easy, son! I remember when you were his age, you said that you wanted to be a professional football player.
Father:And you wanted me to be an engineer!
Grandfather:I just wanted you to be happy, and an engineer—a happy engineer.
Father:But in the end, you just advised me to think carefully.
Grandfather:Yes, and you have found the career that suits your talents. I’m so proud of you. Your son is proud of you, too.
Son:Of course I am, but I have different talents.
Grandfather:(turning to Son) Why don’t you also take my advice and think carefully before jumping in with both feet?
Son:Well, I could try...
Grandfather:If you go to university and play music at the same time, you will have two options for your future. And I’m sure playing in a band will help you make lots of new friends at university.
Father:Yes, lots of new lawyer friends!
Son:(with a sigh) Dad...
(Curtain)
1. What does the conversation mainly talk about?
A.The relationship between family members. |
B.Grandpa’s suggestion on the future job. |
C.The disagreement between Father and Son in choosing a future job. |
D.The future development of the boy’s music band. |
A.Because he shows interest in it. |
B.Because he doesn’t want to go to university. |
C.Because he wants to have a good income. |
D.Because his grandfather wants him to do so. |
A.The father isn’t serious. |
B.The son isn’t serious. |
C.The father doesn’t understand the son’s words. |
D.The father is surprised at his son’s words. |
A.Give up. | B.Begin something. |
C.Act in a hurry. | D.Do a kind of sport. |
A.The son does not take his grandfather’s advice. |
B.The son is disappointed at his father’s words. |
C.The son and his father reach an agreement. |
D.The father doesn’t agree with the grandfather. |
①
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