1 . In 1947 a group of famous people from the art world headed by an Austrian conductor decided to hold an international festival of music, dance and theatre in Edinburgh. The idea was to reunite Europe after the Second World War.
It quickly attracted famous names such as Alec Guinness, Richard Burton, Dame Margot Fonteyn and Marlene Dietrich as well as the big symphony orchestras(交响乐团). It became a fixed event every August and now attracts 400,000 people yearly.
At the same time, the “Fringe” appeared as a challenge to the official festival. Eight uninvited theatre groups turned up in 1947, in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform, and they did so in a public house no longer used for years.
Soon, groups of students firstly from Edinburgh University, and later from the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Durham and Birmingham were making the journey to the Scottish capital each summer to perform theatre by little-known playwrights(剧作家) in small church halls to the people of Edinburgh.
Today the “Fringe”, once less recognized, has far outgrown the festival with around 1,500 performances of theatre, music and dance on every one of the 21 days it lasts. And yet as early as 1959, with only 19 theatre groups performing, some said it was getting too big.
A paid administrator was first employed only in 1971, and today there are eight administrators working all year round and the number rises to 150 during August itself. In 2004 there were 200 places housing(给……提供场地) 1,695 shows by over 600 different groups from 50 different countries. More than 1.25 million tickets were sold.
1. What was the purpose of Edinburgh Festival in the beginning?| A．To bring Europe together again. |
| B．To honor heroes of World WarⅡ. |
| C．To introduce young theatre groups. |
| D．To attract great artists from Europe. |
| A．They owned a public house there. |
| B．They came to take up a challenge. |
| C．They thought they were also famous. |
| D．They wanted to take part in the festival. |
| A．Popular writers. |
| B．University students. |
| C．Artists from around the world. |
| D．Performers of music and dance. |
| A．has become a non-official event |
| B．has gone beyond an art festival |
| C．gives shows all year round |
| D．keeps growing rapidly |
2 . Birthday facts
Many centuries ago, birthdays were considered a time when the bad spirits were able to harm you. It was believed that you should have your friends and family around you
Later on, candles started
However, the Germans are said to have first used cakes and candles. They used a sweet cake and they put a large candle in the centre of the cake to mean “the light of life”.
The “Happy Birthday” song is more than a hundred years old. The music was written in 1893 by two sisters, Patty and Mildred Hill,
‘Happy Birthday to you’
近年人们欢度新春佳节的方式不尽相同。有些人喜欢在家里聚会，有些人喜欢在餐馆聚餐，还有些人喜欢出国过年……请给你的父母写一封邮件，告诉他们你更喜欢哪种方式，你的文章必须包括：
1.简单陈述你喜欢的过年方式
2.建议明年家里过年的方式，并说明理由
注意：请勿透露本人真实姓名和学校名称
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假设你将组织本班的毕业聚会，谈谈你的具体设想并说明理由。
内容必须包括:
1. 明确聚会将在何时，何地，以何种形式举行
2. 简述你的理由
(文中不得出现真实姓名和学校名称)
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| A．Asking Simon and Sally for help. | B．Decorating the house. |
| C．Preparing for a party. | D．Purchasing the food. |
Something different?
Looking for an unforgettable way to celebrate that special occasion? Well, the range of options open to today’s youngster or even ‘oldest, for that matter,
The desire for adventurous celebration
Of course, if you have the money the world is your oyster. A well-heeled relation of
Unfortunately, I was only a distant relation.
Undoubtedly, the more traditional forms of celebration do continue to satisfy the less extravagant or less adventurous
假设你是安源中学高三学生李力，你校学生会就成人仪式的活动征求大家意见，共有三个选项：1. 邀请奥运冠军来校和同学一起进行体育活动；2)前往迪士尼乐园放松一天；3) 参观上海博物馆，了解中国五千年文明。你决定写一封邮件给学生会，表达你的意见，内容包括：
1. 你建议选择哪项活动；
2. 你选择这项活动的理由。
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1. Your view on the invitation of foreign stars and singers to perform in our Spring Festival Gala.
2. Give your reasons.
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| A．Certain gift from Hawaii. | B．A grand wedding party. |
| C．Two plane tickets to Hawaii. | D．A picture of the moon. |
| A．Jenny has graduation ceremony. |
| B．They go for a movie. |
| C．They have family dinner. |
| D．Nothing happens. |
