Reading B The World of the Theatre

The Sydney Opera House

The Paris Opera House

The British Opera House

1.What kind of place do you think the theatre is? Key to Pre-reading (1) It’s a place for people to see performances of plays, operas and concerts.

Pre-reading(2) 3. Do you know anything about William Shakespeare and his plays? William Shakespeare is a very famous and great writer. He created 13 comedies, 10 tragedies, 10 historical plays and 4 romances. His name has been known to China for more than a hundred years, and many of his plays have been widely read among Chinese people. We should remember him forever.

Some of his plays

Some famous plays of William Shakespeare’s ? 《罗密欧与朱丽叶》 （ Romeo and Juliet, 1595 ） 《哈姆雷特》 （ Hamlet, 1601 ） 《威尼斯商人》 （ The Merchant of Venice, 1596 ） 《奥赛罗》 （ Othello, 1604 ） 《李尔王》 （ King Lear, 1605 ） 《亨利四世（上篇）》 （ Henry IV, Part I, 1597 ） 《第十二夜》 （ Twelfth Night, 1600 ） 《麦克白》 （ Macbeth, 1606 ） 《冬天的故事》 （ Winter’s Tale, 1610 ） 《暴风雨》 （ The Tempest, 1612 ）

Puppet Pre-reading(3) 4. How many kinds of theatre do you know? Beijing Opera, Yue Opera, Western Opera, musical… Beijing Opera

Key to Second-reading 1Why is British theatre especially well known according to the article? 2What were traditional theatres in the UK like? British theatre is especially well known because of Shakespeare and his plays. Traditional theatres in the UK were round and had a stage in the middle. There was no roof above the stage.

3What would the audience do in Shakespeare's time if they liked a play? 4.What kind of theatre was very popular in the Tang Dynasty? They would threw money onto the stage. Puppet shows were very popular in the Tang Dynasty.

5.What does “break a leg” mean according to the old British theatre tradition? 6.What do British people usually throw on to the stage after a performance today? It means “good luck”. They usually throw flowers onto the stage.