1 . 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1 个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

Acting was, is and always will be the first love of the National Peking Opera Company’s new vice-president, Tian Lei, Chen Nan reports.

Huguosi Street was one of Beijing’s busiest commercial roads in the olden days. It also     1     (house) the residence of Peking Opera master Mei Lanfang (1894-1961). Not far from Mei’s address, the first theater for Peking Opera     2     (perform) was created in 1954, five years after the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

The neighborhood     3     (change) over the decades, but the theater still stands tall and is     4     (current) managed by the National Peking Opera Company. Tian Lei treasures the hours he spends there, training and rehearsing (排练). Costume-clad and     5     (arm) with a prop spear (道具长矛), the 42-year-old walks confidently across the stage,     6     (practice) a variety of martial art movements, before ending the drill with a liangxiang (striking a pose on the stage).

Tian has been working with the opera company for 10 years. Its premises (处所) are     7     10-minute drive from the theater and his colleagues train there. He, however, prefers the     8     (history) stage. “I come to the theater almost every day     9     I enjoy the peace and emptiness this building offers. Rehearsing here helps me feel closer to the Peking Opera masters     10     once graced the stage,” he says.

2 . When Charles Stratton was five, he stopped growing. His mother took him to see the famous showman, P.T. Barnum. Mr. Barnum thought a small person would be the perfect addition to his show. He hired Charles’ parents along with him, and they traveled the world together.

He gave the two-foot-tall Charles a name, General Tom Thumb. He taught Tom how to sing, dance, act and tell jokes. When he felt Tom was ready to perform on stage, he made up ads. To stir up great interest, he said that Tom was eleven years old and had come from England.

During the show, Tom fought battles pretendedly with tall people. He also danced upon a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall. Tom’s act was very popular and brought in a lot of money. By the time Tom was an adult, he had grown very rich. He had become a billionaire at the age of twenty five.

Fortunately for Tom, Mr. Barnum added more little people to his show, and Tom became lucky in love as well. One of the little people was Lavinia Warren, a school teacher. Tom was able to win her love, and they married.

The ceremony and reception were the talk of the town. They were attended by many rich and famous people and by about 2000 guests. Crowds filled the streets of New York to have a look at their tiny wedding marriage. The couple even met with President Abraham Lincoln on their honeymoon just before going to live in Tom’s house in Connecticut.

Their wedding, which took place during the Civil War, provided a welcome escape from the sad problems of war. Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade, communities throughout the country sponsored(发起) “Tom Thumb” weddings. In these weddings, small boys and girls, all dressed up, went through marriage ceremony for fun.

1. “Talk of the town” means_________.

A．it was in the newspaper	B．people spread bad rumors about it
C．it was the most popular happenings	D．it was discussed in a city meeting

2. What does the author think about Tom’s wedding?

A．It helped people cheer up in a dark time.	B．People gave it too much of their attention.
C．It was funny and ridiculous.	D．Tom and Lavinia were stupid.

3. Tom would dance on a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall because______.

A．the wooden plate would make it sound as if Tom was dancing

B．it made Tom look taller

C．the eight-foot-tall man was the only tall person Tom trusted

D．the difference between them would make Tom look even smaller

4. What ithe main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Weddings always make people feel full of sunshine.

B．People are always disappointed during war time.

C．Entertainment can serve an important purpose.

D．People should be married when they are small children.