Theatre

Jenny Wilde

Theatre fun

Plays are an important part of British culture. The West End theatre district in London is the best place to watch a professional play， but acting also takes place in every school and village hall across the country.

There are over 2，500 non-professional drama groups in the UK today and they are an active part of community life. People from all walks of life take on acting roles in addition to their regular jobs. They do it for fun， for the love of acting and as a way to meet new people.

Not everyone in a drama club is a skilled actor， but enthusiasm is considered to be more important than talent！ Friends， family members and neighbours enjoy getting together to watch the final performance and telling the people they know to ‘break a leg. Its a great way of bringing communities together. Also， in many rural parts of Britain， non-professional theatre is the only chance people have to see plays for miles around.

Many people get a taste for acting at school. Every school puts on a play at least once per year， usually at Christmas， and parents love coming to watch their children perform. Ask any British person and theyre sure to have happy memories of being in their schools Christmas play， whether they played the role of Mary or Joseph or perhaps even a sheep or a donkey！

Another Christmas theatre tradition is the pantomime. Pantomimes are a type of musical comedy for families. The audience is encouraged to participate in the performance—singing along with the music and shouting to the actors. Pantomimes are really fun to watch， especially for children.

British people love going to the theatre， professional or not， and many of them also enjoy performing. If you have the chance， go and see a play in the UK！

Activity 1

Check the words （1–6） in a dictionary and use them to complete the sentences （a–f）.

1 community 2 enthusiasm 3 participate

4 rural 5 skilled 6 tradition

a. A ______ is a way of acting that a group of people have done for a long time.

b. If you are ______， you have the ability to do something well.

c. If you live in a ______ area， you live in the countryside， not in the city.

d. When you have ______ for something， you feel very interested and excited about it.

e. You ______ when you take part in an activity.

f. Your local ______ is the group of people who live around you.

Activity 2

Read the article again and choose the correct answer in sentences 1–6.

1. In the UK， drama clubs are mostly in London / all over the country.

2. People take part in non-professional drama clubs as well as / instead of doing their full-time job.

3. Its necessary / not important to be a skilled actor when you join a drama club.

4. In rural areas there are lots of / not many professional theatres.

5. School plays are really popular / not very popular.

6. While watching a pantomime， you should stay quiet / can make lots of noise.

Activity 3.1

Look at phrases 1–3 below （in bold in the text） and match them to their meanings （a–c）.

1. all walks of life a. a variety of different backgrounds， jobs， ages， etc.

2. break a leg b. good luck

3. get a taste for + -ing c. start enjoying doing something new

Activity 3.2

Now use the phrases from Activity 3.1 in sentences 1–3 （you may need to change the form）.

1. Alice ______ diving when she went on holiday to Egypt.

2. ‘Ive got my driving test tomorrow. ‘Oh！ ______！ Im sure youll pass.

3. People from ______ enjoy doing yoga.

Activity 4

Look at the phrasal verbs （verb + preposition = new verb） （a–e） below， which are also underlined in the text， and use them to replace the words （1–5） in the text below them. You may need to change the form.

a. take place b. take on c. get together d. put on e. sing along

Andrew has （1） decided to do the job of planning Lauras surprise birthday celebration. Lots of preparation has already （2） happened and Laura has no idea. Andrew has （3） met with some friends of his who are singers and he has asked them to （4） give a performance of popular songs so that everyone can （5） sing at the same time. It will be a great party.

Activity 5

Is going to the theatre a popular activity in your country？ Have you ever been in a play？

Answers

Activity 1

1. f; 2. d; 3. e; 4. c; 5. b; 6. a

Activity 2

1. all over the country; 2. as well as;

3. not important; 4. not many;

5. really popular; 6. can make lots of noise

Activity 3.1

1. a; 2. b; 3. c

Activity 3.2

1. got a taste for; 2. Break a leg; 3. all walks of life

Activity 4

1. taken on; 2. taken place; 3. got together; 4. put on; 5. sing along