中国舞者“征服”纽约

陕西 吕 品

2022 年5 月20 日，来自中国广东惠州的芭蕾舞者陈镇威被纽约城市芭蕾舞团任命为首席舞者。他是该舞团74年历史里任命的首位中国首席舞者。

主题语境：人与社会 篇幅：329词 建议用时：6分钟

1As the curtain on the stage falls slowly, Lincoln Center bursts into thunderous applause. Chinese ballet cavalier(骑士风度的男子)Chun Wai Chan once again impresses the audience from all over the world with his wonderful performance.

2“It's incredible.I never thought my dream would come true so soon,”Chan said, recalling the scene when he got the news in May, 2022 that he was promoted to the principal (首席) dancer of the New York City Ballet (NYCB), the company's first Chinese and fourth Asian principal dancer in 74 years.

3Founded by George Balanchine, the father of US ballet, NYCB is one of the leading ballet companies in the world, with 95 percent of the company's dancers coming from the School of American Ballet,and only 5 percent selected from top dancers around the world.

4To stand out from the top dancers,Chan has made every effort.“Whether you can become a principal or not depends on many factors. You need excellent physical condition,good teachers, strong support from family, continuous practice, good luck and opportunity,as well as a healthy body.All of these are too important to be without,”he said.

5Born in Huizhou,South China's Guangdong Province in 1992,Chan became attached(喜欢的)to dance as a child.However,his parents preferred that he become a doctor or a lawyer in the future.The boy then wrote a seven-page letter to his parents describing his determination to study dance. Thanks to the sincere letter, Chan finally gained the support of his family and started his dream-seeking journey.

6Chan, with a Chinese cultural background, is also trying hard to promote Chinese culture on the Western ballet stage.Liang Zhu, a ballet adaptation of an ancient Chinese legend designed by him, was performed at Lincoln Center in New York.“This is a love story from China. I hope that US audiences can enjoy our wonderful Chinese culture,”Chan said.

Reading Check

1.Which word can replace the underlined word“incredible”in paragraph 2?

A.Strange.

B.Alarming.

C.Harmonious.

D.Unbelievable.

2.What can be learned about NYCB?

A.It includes mostly Asian dancers.

B.It was set up by an American.

C.It is the best ballet company in the world.

D.It has only five percent of the top dancers in the world.

3.What can be used to describe Chan?

A.Generous.

B.Imaginative.

C.Determined.

D.Bold.

4.What does the last paragraph focus on?

A.Chan's efforts to spread Chinese culture.

B.Chan's parents'expectations of him.

C.Chan's decision to be a ballet dancer.

D.A famous story in ancient China.

Language Study

Ⅰ. Useful expressions

burst into thunderous applause 爆发出雷鸣般的掌声

come true 实现；成为现实

be promoted to the principal dancer 被升为首席舞者

be founded by 由……建立

stand out from 从……中脱颖而出

depend on 取决于

make every effort 竭尽全力

gain the support from family 获得来自家庭的支持

become attached to 喜欢上……

start one's dream-seeking journey 开启某人的逐梦之旅

Ⅱ.Difficult sentence

However, his parents preferred that he become a doctor or a lawyer in the future.然而，他的父母更希望他将来能成为一名医生或律师。

【点石成金】preferred后的that从句用虚拟语气时，谓语通常为(should)do。例如：He preferred that nothing (should) be said about his generosity. 他更希望自己的慷慨不被谈及。