新外研版高一英语必修二unit4课文.docx

必修二 unit4 课文 Understanding ideas. When HAMLET meets Peking OPERA. I thought I knew a lot about Hamlet. As a high school student with English literature as one of my main subjects, I have to! Shakespeares Hamlet is probably the most important play buy the most important writer in English. Almost everybody knows To be, or not to be, right? Having seen quite a few productions of hamlet and read the play many times, I was full of confidence until the packing opera came to town！ Dating back to the 18th century, the Peking Opera has over 200 years of history. Does this man is easier than a Shakespeare play to understand? To find out the answer I just had to go and see the revenge of Prince Zidan-the Peking Opera version of Hamlet. Starting with an orchestra playing traditional Chinese instruments, the opera brought a completely new sound to my Western ears. At first, I thought what I heard was a violin, but later I learned that it was an instrument with two strings called jinghu. Then seeing the main characters come on stage, I was surprised! The costumes and masks were amazing. The performers of course sang in Chinese, but the music, exaggerated movements and mime helped get the meanings across to the audience. The voices themselves sounded really unique-some of the female voices were so high that I was sure they could break glass! And the stage was really simple: a decorated whip represented a horse, and a screen with Chinese characters, a study. Using such techniques, the oprea had transformed a small stage into the whole universe. Easily my favorite part of the show was how the characters moved on stage. I had never seen Prince Hamlet do a backflip before! That was simply incredible. It was so dazzling and energetic that I wasnt sure if the characters were performers or athletes! Everyone was clapping! Before experiencing the revenge of Prince Zidan, I wasnt sure if I would enjoy it. But in fact, I was on the edge of my seat! Feeling the strong emotions of love,