1 . Mary Dickins had been a member of the audience at poetry nights before and knew “the poetry clap”. She made a polite tapping of fingers. But when she made her debut (首次演出) as a performer at the age of 62 at the legendary Bang Said the Gun night in south London, she said, “It was so wild — like nothing I had ever seen before.” The audience stamped their feet and shook shakers. “It felt transformative. I thought, ‘I’ve got to have more of this,’ ” Dickins said. Becoming a performance poet has given her a place on a stage of her own making.
All her life she has written, mostly without being seen or heard. Her mother died when she was nine, and, after she went into a care home at 13, Dickins’ writing stayed in notebooks. Really, she says, a lot of her adult life has been about getting over childhood shyness. At university — she studied education — she met her husband of 40 years, but in three years of seminars she did not say a word. Some of this results from her years at the children’s home. She says, “It gave me a sense of what it’s like to be excluded. I never fitted in anywhere.”
After she graduated, she discovered that she loved working with people with learning disabilities. She became an expert in inclusive education. “That was my niche (称心的职业),” she says. She published books and returned to the University of North London as a senior lecturer in early childhood studies.
Dickins now sees that in adulthood she has been giving herself permission to be silly. “The sillier I allow myself to be, the better the writing is,” she says. Her observations are humorous.
“Putting things into words and giving shape to your emotions is an important part of coming to terms with the things that happen in life,” she says.
Does she still feel like an outsider?
“I think I’ve made it into a virtue. I celebrate the fact that I don’t fit into a box. Finally! You have to wait till you’re 62 to feel confident!” she says. “But I have a sense of who I am and I'm proud of it. I wouldn’t be anyone else now — and it took me a long time to say that.”
1. How did Dickins feel about her debut?| A．Calm. | B．Awkward. | C．Stressed. | D．Encouraged. |
| A．Her immature writing style. | B．Her experience at the care home. |
| C．Her struggle with her university studies. | D．Her difficult relationship with her husband. |
| A．It makes her land a good job. | B．It sharpens her sense of humor. |
| C．It enables her to get on well with her life. | D．It helps her overcome her learning disabilities. |
| A．Mary Dickins’ New Start after 60 | B．Mary Dickins’ First Performance |
| C．Mary Dickins’ Troubled Writing Career | D．Mary Dickins’ Impact on Performance Poets |
2 . 75-year-old hip-hop (街舞) grandma Stephanie Walsh has gained worldwide attention with her intense dance moves and incredible energy. Better known as “Ms. Stephanie” online, Walsh has been featured on social media accounts with some videos drawing more than 11 million people to watch.
Walsh believes the videos gained popularity because she is 75. “It’s because I’m a senior,” said Walsh. “You don’t usually see someone my age doing hip-hop and moving like that. ”But actually, it’s more than that. Just as her profile claims, Walsh’s videos are “inspiring the world to dance like no one is watching. ”
“Dance isn’t just your body, it’s what you’re feeling inside about the dance and it’s what comes out here in your face,” Walsh said. “What I want to put through my movement is how much fun it is and how much joy it gives you.”
From a young age, Walsh loved to dance but her family didn’t have the money for classes. When she was nearly 30, she got her daughter ballet lessons, which her daughter hated. So, she took her daughter out and started classes herself right away.
Walsh believes her lifelong passion for dance is what motivates her today. “Everybody has to have a passion in their life,” she said. “It’s like that saying, ‘A life without passion is a life half lived.’ I believe that.”
Walsh dances for fun and fitness, but also for therapy (心理治疗). She struggled through countless hardships, and she has more than enough reasons to keep her down. But they don’t. She turns to her faith, her friends and of course, dance, to shine as an inspiration to those around her.
Gilbert, one of Walsh’s followers, says she inspires him every day. “She’s a beautiful soul who teaches me that it doesn’t matter about your age or your size. As long as you feel good, that’s all that matters,” says Gilbert. “I am truly thankful that Walsh is teaching me at the age of 32 to live my life full and stop being so scared.”
1. What motivates Walsh to do hip-hop?| A．Its great social benefit. | B．Its growing popularity. |
| C．Her enthusiasm for dance. | D．Her hunger for reputation. |
| A．Her advanced age. | B．Her smooth moves. |
| C．Her endless energy. | D．Her confident claim. |
| A．Be active in social media. |
| B．Set a good example to others. |
| C．Take full advantage of his talent. |
| D．Adopt a positive approach to life. |
| A．Optimistic About Life: The Way to Survive |
| B．Forever Young in Dance: An Inspiring Figure |
| C．Embracing Social Media: The Key to Success |
| D．Dancing with the Young: An Amazing Journey |
3 . Tina Leverton was 62 when she bought her first pair of ballet shoes. She said putting her feet into the soft leather was very emotional. She said: “I’ve waited a long time for it.”
A few days later, Leverton took her first ballet class after seeing an advertisement in a newspaper. It showed older women dancing in a class near Leverton’s house. “As I came in the door, I found a big smile on my face. From the minute I started, I felt like coming home.”
Leverton had longed to dance as a child. Sadly, her parents couldn’t afford ballet classes, for they were first-generation Indian immigrants, struggling to make a living in the UK. Her father was a train driver on the underground in London and her mother held two cleaning jobs. Nonetheless, she harboured her dream of being a ballerina (芭蕾舞女演员).
At her present age, a grand plie-lowering to the floor with bent knees-seemed to be out of the question. It took her three months to master the move: leaping and landing on one foot. ”I love the struggle and the challenge of learning something new. People in their 60s have a lot of self-limiting beliefs: ‘I can’t do it,’ ‘I’m not good enough.’ And maybe they’re not good enough. But it doesn’t matter,” she said.
Ballet has been transformative. At a medical appointment a few months after Leverton’s first class, a nurse measured her at 163cm, half an inch taller than she had thought. She attributes (归因) the difference to improved posture. Her muscle tone has improved and her lower back pain has stopped. Dancing has also brought new friends. She met a group of older, more independent women and worked together towards a team award with the Royal Academy of Dance. And then, of course, there is the joyful feeling. “Ballet is all the therapy (治疗) I’ll ever need,” said Leverton.
1. How did Leverton feel after taking her dance lesson?| A．Tired. | B．Confused. | C．Shocked. | D．Thrilled. |
| A．Her family was badly off. | B．She wasn’t able to leap high. |
| C．Her family laughed at her dream. | D．She had to focus on classes. |
| A．A team award. | B．Money and fame. |
| C．Friendship and joy. | D．A medical treatment. |
| A．Hard work pays off. | B．Never too old to pursue dreams. |
| C．Interest is the key to success. | D．Money isn’t everything. |
4 . Astrid Poghosyan, a 28-year-old Armenian violinist, now working as a helper to the president of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, a celebrated orchestra in China's most populous city, has achieved her dream as a musician.
This summer, she has been busy making preparations for a series of in-person and online music events and cultural exchange programs, including a music festival in Shanghai and a live-streamed international violin competition. Poghosyan said she always puts all her energy into the projects in which she is involved, whether they are offline or online events, as she believes that every little effort will help her realize her music-related dreams.
Having studied and worked in China for 12 years, Poghosyan has now become a real China hand. Such a multicultural background has certainly helped her excel at her current job. "Poghosyan plays a very special role in our orchestra," said Zhou Ping, president of the orchestra. "She has lived in China for long and loves the Chinese culture, and she knows how to use the advantage of a multicultural background in her work."
For Poghosyan, the life she now leads is quite different from when she first came to China in 2009 to study violin at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Then just 16, Poghosyan couldn't speak a word of Chinese. "And my high-school-level English wasn't of much help at that time," she said. "So I decided to learn Chinese to solve the communication problem."
As she gradually immersed (沉浸) herself in the Chinese language and culture, she also started to make Chinese friends and explore the exciting city life of Shanghai. "Since I first came to Shanghai, I have always been impressed by the kindness and friendliness of the people here," she said, "Their smiles have made me feel the warmth of the city."
1. What does Poghosyan do in China at present?| A．A hostess of a music festival. | B．A president of an orchestra |
| C．A judge of some music events. | D．An assistant of Zhou Ping. |
| A．Speed up. | B．Show off | C．Stand out. | D．Settle down |
| A．Disappointed. | B．Inspired. | C．Worried | D．Satisfied. |
| A．An Armenian's exciting academic life in Shanghai | B．The advantage of multicultural background in work |
| C．An Armenian musician realizing her dream in China. | D．The love brought to an Armenian by Chinese people. |
