Reading Turandot in Beijing
Step 1: Lead-in
Boys and girls, I’m glad to tell you that today we’ll have a chance to enjoy a section of performance of Giacomo Puccini’s world-famous opera, Turandot.
OK. It is performed in the Forbidden City in Beijing. Can you guess who directed it? (Zhang Yimou.)
Have you seen any of Zhang Yimou’s films? Do you like them? Why or why not?
What else has Zhang Yimou directed besides films? ( They are the ‘Bid for the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing’, which was shown in Moscow, a performance at the closing ceremony at Athens Olympic Games, an outdoor performance of Third Sister Liu in Guilin and Turandot in Beijing).
Have you seen or have you ever heard of the opera Turandot? If you have seen or heard of it, Can you tell us what it is about? Step 2: Fast reading for general ideas
A review is a report or an essay giving some information as well as some opinions or ideas about a book, a performance, a painting or something similar.
In our lesson today, we will read a review of an opera. What do you think the review will tell us? (It will give us some background information about Turandot, tell us about the plot of the opera and give other information, such as the actors’ names, as well as an evaluation of the performance as a whole.)
Go through the passage as quickly as possible and try to find answers to the three questions in part A on page 2. Just focus on and identify the information needed to answer these questions. Answers A 1 Turandot is an opera that tells the story of a cold-hearted Chinese princess, named Turandot, who lives in the Forbidden City. To avoid marriage, she says that any potential husband must answer three riddles correctly or die. 2 Giacomo Puccini wrote the opera. The final scene was completed by Franco Alfano, one of his students, based on Puccini’s notes after he died. 3 It was performed outdoors. Step 3: Detailed reading for important information 1. Let’s read the passage a second time and find out the background information of the opera. Then complete the table: Main characters of the Turandot—a Chinese princess；Calaf—a prince；Liustory —Calaf’s father’s young slave Setting Beijing’s Forbidden City Plot Director Conductor Actors and actresses The story takes on the classic love triangle of the three main characters Turandot, Calaf and Liu. Liu loves Calaf, but Calaf has fallen in love with Turandot. Because Turandot does not want to get married, she declares that anyone who wants to marry her must answer her three questions. If the one cannot answer these questions, he will be killed. Zhang Yimou Zubin Mehta, an internationally famous conductor born in India Sharon Sweet—Turandot; Barbara Hendricks—Liu; Kristjan Johannsson—Calaf; other singers and musicians from abroad and China 2. Retell the story of Turandot, using what has been written in the table. 3. Read the text again and choose the best answers according to the text.
⑴ How many performances of Turandot were performed in the Forbidden City in Beijing?
A. eight B. seven
C. one D. the text doesn’t mention it ⑵ Who wrote Turandot and when was it written? A. Giacomo Puccini, in 1924
B. Giacomo Puccini’s former student, in 1924 C. Zubin Mehta, in the 1990s D. Sharon Sweet, in the 1990s
⑶ When was Turandot staged in Beijing? A. in 1924
B. in the twenty first century C. in the 1990s D. in 1998
⑷ How does the writer think of the opera? A. terrible B. moving C. boring D. amazing Keys (1)-(4) AACD 4. Listen to the tape and then finish Parts C1 and C2. Answers C1 1 Because she felt that she could almost feel the history. 2 She is cold-hearted. 3 He was killed. 4 She does not have to marry him. 5 He promised to allow Turandot to choose her own husband. 6 Eight. 7 Turandot was played by Sharon Sweet from the USA, Liu was played by Barbara Hendricks from the USA and Calaf was sung by Kristian Johannsson from Iceland. 8 The bringing together of the group of people from many countries, the music and the setting. C2 6 3 5 2 1 8 4 7 5. Now, read the Reading strategy. In reading the review of an opera, you need to first find some background information, and then find out some important information, such as the actors’ names, and the writer’s opinions will follow these things. Now let’s complete Parts D and E. Answers D 1 e 2 b 3 d 4 f 5 a 6 h 7 c 8 g E (1) performance (2) talents (3) China (4) gold (5) princess (6) riddles (7) potential (8) marry (9) setting (10) witnessed Step 4: Post-reading activities 1. Pair work
Talk about a Western or a Chinese opera that you are all familiar with. Introduce the main characters, the setting and the plot. Chinese Opera The Chinese opera is a traditional form of stage entertainment, weaving together elements of mime, dance, song, dialogue, swordplay, and acrobatics into one fluid continuous flow. Gestures, movements and expressions incorporated within each performer's script come together to bring forth an impressive performance. In contrast to Western stage entertainment, which is subdivided into different categories such as opera, drama and sketches, Chinese opera has remained faithful to its original format over the centuries. By doing away with three-dimensional stage props and complicated backdrops found in Western opera, Chinese opera conveys the idea of time and space to the audience through the acting of performers. This simple and flexible technique is called “imagined time and space” in Chinese operatic terminology. The acting, however, is not mere imitation of movements in daily life. Instead, it has been perfected to bring out just their essentials, making them highly-stylize and rhythmic dancing movements. Such acting is described in Chinese stage language as \formula\motifs and recitations to represent each character in the series of characters known as Xingtous. All this, plus imagined time and space and stylized acting, has enabled the story to rise above real life and create a strong dramatic atmosphere with distinct operatic effects. Western ears do not readily appreciate this art, for Chinese opera often seems shrilly and 'noisy'. Shrill voices pierce the air, accompanied by loud gongs, crashing cymbals, pounding drums and droning stringed instruments. The music is not intended to be melodic, as in the West, but rather used as punctuation to the performance. Chinese opera is an art of the people—enjoyed and appreciated by all across the social spectrum. In a real sense it is a folk art, comparable in many ways with the Chinese Circus. Although the music of Chinese opera may seem very alien, the stories told are very familiar to those accustomed to Western opera: heroes battle overwhelmingly powerful foes, good versus evil, and lovers seek escape from domineering and disapproving parents. A distinct feature of Chinese opera is the makeup, movements, props, and colorful costumes. These features identify a character's age, sex, and personality the moment he or she enters the story. Face painting leans heavily on earlier forms of mask and make up. Facial patterns rely on exaggeration and the symbolism of color to suggest a character's attributes and personality. The painted faces become what the Chinese call ‘a mirror of the soul’. Well-versed members of the audience will be able to tell instantly the personality of characters on the stage by their painted faces. Although colors sometime represent a physical attribute of a character, they are predominantly used as indicators of a character’s personality. Apart from the exquisitely embroidered traditional costumes, head-dresses are a requisite in Chinese opera. The more elaborate the head-dress, the more significant the character. Costumes are extravagant in style in order to achieve as great a theatrical effect as possible. Like the face makeup, the color codes of these costumes identify the various ranks, status, and personality of the characters. Although sharing a common ancestry, Chinese opera boasts over 300 various distinct forms—taking their names from their places of origin. These forms are generally discernible by their use of local dialects and distinct ‘melodies’. Beijing opera is considered by most to be the most refined. Also widespread are Pingju Opera, Kunqu Opera, Shaoxing Opera, Henan Opera, Sichuan Opera, Shanxi Opera, Huangmei Opera, Huagu Opera and Yangko Opera. Some Chinese ethnic minority groups have some local form of operas. Many modern instrumental music pieces incorporate traditional instruments while adapting a more modern style. However, instrumental music is still very traditional. Many works of traditional music are still played by small quartets and large orchestras. Chinese melodies are quite unique and incorporate into many modern compositions. Chinese instrumental music has changed because it is no longer restricted to the traditional format. Even non-traditional instruments such as the piano are used in creating modern works. Western Opera Opera is a form of theatre in which the drama is conveyed wholly or predominantly through music and singing. Opera emerged in Italy around the year 1600 and is generally associated with the Western classical music tradition. Opera uses many of the elements of spoken theatre such as scenery, costumes, and acting. Generally, however, opera is distinguished from other dramatic forms by the importance of song and conventions of vocal technique. The singers are accompanied by a musical ensemble ranging from a small instrumental ensemble to a full symphonic orchestra. Opera may also incorporate dance; this was especially true of French opera for much of its history. Comparable art forms from various other parts of the world, many of them ancient in origin, exist and are also sometimes called “opera” by analogy, usually prefaced with an adjective indicating the region (for example, Chinese opera). These independent traditions are not derivative of Western opera, but are rather distinct forms of musical theatre. Opera is also not the only type of Western musical theatre: in the ancient world, Greek drama featured singing and instrumental accompaniment; and in modern times, other forms such as the musical have appeared. The word opera means “works” in Italian (from the plural of Latin opus meaning “work” or “labour”) suggesting that it combines the arts of solo and choral singing, declamation, acting and dancing in a staged spectacle. Dafne by Jacopo Peri was the earliest composition considered opera, as understood today. It was written around 1597, largely under the inspiration of an elite circle of literate Florentine humanists who gathered as the \Significantly, Dafne was an attempt to revive the classical Greek drama, part of the wider revival of antiquity characteristic of the Renaissance. The members of the Camerata considered that the \parts of Greek dramas were originally sung, and possibly even the entire text of all roles; opera was thus conceived as a way of “restoring” this situation. Dafne is unfortunately lost. A later work by Peri, Euridice, dating from 1600, is the first opera score to have survived to the present day. The honour of being the first opera still to be regularly performed, however, goes to Claudio Monteverdi’s Orfeo, composed for the court of Mantua in 1607. 2. Group work Let’s come to Part F. Work in pairs and share your opinions with each other. For reference Opera The word opera comes from Italian, so the first operas came into being in Italy. The opera is a play in which a dramatic performance is set to music, so the actors and actresses sing some or all of their parts. In the late 17th century, the opera was popular in some other European countries, such as England, France and Germany. Giacomo Puccini and Turandot Born on 22 December 1858 in Lucca, Puccini was one of the greatest Italian composers, some of whose operas, such as Madam Butterfly, Turandot, are still loved by people in different countries. Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta is one of the world’s greatest conductors. He began his conductor’s career when he was 25 years old, and he has conducted quite a few famous philharmonics in the world, such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the New York Philharmonic. Since 1991, he has led the Israel Philharmonic. Step 5: Language points
牛津英语模块八第二单元Reading精品教案1
