Theatres, Music-Halls and Cinema

ˎTheaˏtres| are ˈvery much the ˈsame in ˎLondon| as ˈanywhere ˎelse;| the ˈchief ˏtheatres,| ˏmusic-halls| and ˏcinemas| are in the ˈWest ˎEnd.|| If you are ˈstaying in ˏLondon| for a ˈfew ˏdays,| you’ll have ˈno difficulty whatˎever| in finding ˈsomewhere to ˈspend an enˈjoyable ˎevening.|| You’ll ˈfind ˏopera,| ˏballet,| ˏcomedy,| ˏdrama,| reˏvue,| ˈmusical ˏcomedy| and vaˎriety.|| ˏFilms| are ˈshown in the ˏcinemas| during the ˈgreater ˈpart of the ˎday.|| The ˈbest ˈseats at ˏtheatres| are ˈthose in the ˏstalls,| the ˏcircle| and the ˎupper ˌcircle.|| ˈThen ˈcomes the ˏpit,| and ˈlast of ˏall| the ˎgallery| where the ˈseats are ˎcheapest.|| ˈBoxes, of ˏcourse,| are the ˈmost exˎpensive.|| ˈMost ˈtheatres and ˏmusic-halls| have ˈgood ˏorchestras| with ˈpopular conˎductors.|| You ˈought to make a ˎpoint| of ˈgoing to the ˎopeˏra| at ˈleast ˎonce| during the ˈseason, if you ˎcan.|| ˏThere| you can ˈget the ˈbest of ˎeverything| – an ˈexcellent ˏorchestra,| ˈfamous conˏductors,| ˈcelebrated ˏsingers| and a ˈwell-ˈdressed ˎaudience.|| But, of ˏcourse,| if you’re ˈnot ˈfond of ˈmusic and ˏsinging,| ˈopera ˈwon’t ˎinterest you.||

6. Read the following dialogues, put stress-tone marks on them using different types of scales and practice reading them.

1. I’d like to book two seats for tomorrow. Would you like something in the front stalls? I suppose there’s nothing further back, is there? Not unless you go to a matinee.	2. Can I still get tickets for tonight’s show? The front row of the dress circle is fairly free. Are there any boxes? No, I’m afraid that’s all there is.
3. Are there any seats left for Saturday night? A11 and B14 are all that’s left. Haven’t you got anything cheaper? Only if somebody cancels.	4. Is it possible to get tickets for tonight? You can sit wherever you like in the first row. Isn’t there anything a little less dear? No, I’m afraid you’ve left it rather late.

7. Listen to the abstract from “Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare, lay stress-tone marks in the last 10 lines. Pay attention to the sentences in bold; comment on the additional shades of meaning of these sentences. Practice reading the poem, learn it by heart and act it out in front of your group.

Antony’s Address to Romans “Julius Caesar”

(by W. Shakespeare)

ˏFriends,| ˏRomans,| ˎcountrymen,| ˎlend me your ˎears;|

ˈI ˈcome to ˎbury ˌCaesar,| ˈnot to ͵praise him.||

The ˈevil that ˈmen ˎdo| ˈlives ˎafter ˌthem,|

The ˌgood is ˈoft inˋterred with their ˎbones;|

ˈSo ˈlet it ˈbe with ˎCaesar.|| The ˈnoble ˏBrutus|

Hath ˏtold you| ˎCaeˏsar| was amˋbitious.||

̅If it were ˎso,| it was a ˎgrievous ˌfault,|

And ↘grievously hath ↘Caesar ˋanswer’d it|

↗Here ↗under ↗leave of ˏBrutus ˈand the ˏrest,|

For ˏBrutus| ˏis an ˋhonourable ̬man;|

So are they ˎall,| ˎall| ˈhonourable ˎmen,|

ˈCome I to ˎspeak| in ˈCaesar’s ˎfuneral.||

He ˈwas my ˎfriend,| ˏfaithful| and ˎjust to| ˎme;|

But ˈBrutus →says| he ˈwas amˋbitious;|

And ˏBrutus| is an ˎhonourable ˌman.||

He hath brought ˈmany ˋcaptives ˌhome to ˌRome,|

Whose →ransoms| did the ˈgeneral ˎcoffers ˌfill;|

Did ˈthis in ˏCaesar| ˈseem amˏbitious?|

When that the ↘poor had ̬cried,| ↘Caesar hath ˋwept;|

Amˏbition| should be ˈmade of ˋsterner stuff;|

ˏYet| ˏBrutus| ˏsays| he ˈwas amˎbitious;|

And ˏBrutus| ˏis an ˙honourable ˎman.||

You ↘all did ˎsee| that on the ˈLuperˏcal|

I ˈthrice preˈsented him a ˈkingly →crown,|

Which ↘he did ↘thrice reˋfuse:| was ˈthis amˏbition?||

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;

And, sure, he is an honourable man.

I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,

But here I am to speak what I do know.

You all did love him once, not without cause:

What cause withholds you then to morn for him?

Oh judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,

And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;

My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar.

And I must pause till it comes back to me.

8. Listen to the following statements about celebrities. Choose one that you like most, write down a few ideas about the statement that you’ve chosen (up to 10 sentences) and tell them to your group-mates using the Sliding, Scandent and Level Scales.

1. A celebrity is a person who works hard all his life to become well known, and then wears dark glasses to avoid being recognized.

2. I don’t want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying.

3. There is only one thing worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.

4. What goes up, must come down.

5. Winning isn’t everything, but it sure as hell beats losing.

6. Whenever a friend succeeds, a little something in me dies.

7. Genius is one per cent inspiration, ninety-nine per cent perspiration.

8. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

9. Nothing succeeds like success.

10. Let me tell you about the rich. They are different from you and me.