美国国家公共电台 NPR Atop Ancient Ruins, A Rock Opera About Emperor Nero Leaves Some Romans Unimpressed

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Well, it's been 2,000 years since he ruled Rome, but a notorious emperor is causing outrage¹ again. A massive stage has been built amid the ruins of the Roman Forum² for a rock opera about Nero. Archaeologists and art historians are denouncing what they see as the commercialization of the country's heritage. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli went to opening night.

SYLVIA POGGIOLI, BYLINE³: The invitation-only spectators make the steep, winding⁴ trek⁵ from the Roman Forum up the Palatine Hill. Ladies in evening dress try to avoid getting their stiletto heels stuck in the old Roman paving stones. At the top, the view is impressive. Under a starlit sky, the Colosseum and Arch of Constantine loom⁶ just a few dozen yards away. What's incongruous is the huge metallic⁷ stage and 3,000-seat arena⁸ soaring over the archaeological remains⁹ of the Domus Aurea - the massive golden house built by the Emperor Nero in 64 A.D.

(APPLAUSE)

POGGIOLI: The first character to appear on stage is a wizened¹⁰ crone with Medusa-like hair.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "DIVINE NERO - A ROCK OPERA")

UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: (As Locusta, speaking Italian).

POGGIOLI: Notorious in ancient Rome for her poisonous concoctions¹¹, Locusta illustrates¹² the revisionist theme of the musical. "What have you been reading all these years," she asks the audience. "History books are always full of falsehood. They're written by the victors. I'm the only one," says Locusta, "who knows the truth because I was there." The plot line is similar to "House Of Cards". Thanks to murders and intrigues¹³ by his ambitious mother, Agrippina, Nero seizes the emperor's throne.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "DIVINE NERO - A ROCK OPERA")

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (Singing) Superstar, I'm No. 1.

POGGIOLI: Videos are projected on big screens and sets are in continual movement while acrobats¹⁴ dangle¹⁵ from ropes and singers and dancers try to bring ancient Rome back to life. "Divine Nero: A Rock Opera," begs the question - why choose one of the most nefarious¹⁶ emperors in history for a musical? Artistic¹⁷ director Ernesto Migliacci is convinced Nero's image as the man who fiddled¹⁸ while Rome burned was invented by Tacitus and Suetonius. Modern historians, he says, discovered a very different man - one with revolutionary ideas.

ERNESTO MIGLIACCI: His target was to give to the Romans, to the poor people - bread, games, entertainment. He tried to make a real cultural revolution.

POGGIOLI: At opening night intermission, many spectators appear unconvinced and are walking out. Luca Ragazzi can't hide his disappointment.

LUCA RAGAZZI: I thought, maybe it is going to be entertaining, of course, but also delivering information - history - maybe it was more refined. But it's not. It's not refined at all, I promise you. It's just a series of killing¹⁹ one after another.

POGGIOLI: Not present was art historian Tomaso Montanari, who strongly opposes turning heritage sites into money-making entertainment locations.

TOMASO MONTANARI: (Through interpreter) Visitors are not consumers. Our archaeological heritage should be free from marketing²⁰. It should be a place for learning, not for vulgar musicals such as this one.

POGGIOLI: Performances continue through August, then the stage will be dismantled²¹. The producers are counting on large ticket sales among summer tourists. But, during the first week, there were only a few hundred spectators each night. Sylvia Poggioli, NPR News, Rome.

1 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

2 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

5 trek   

vi.作长途艰辛的旅行；n.长途艰苦的旅行

参考例句：

• We often go pony-trek in the summer.夏季我们经常骑马旅行。
• It took us the whole day to trek across the rocky terrain.我们花了一整天的时间艰难地穿过那片遍布岩石的地带。

6 loom   

n.织布机，织机；v.隐现，(危险、忧虑等)迫近

参考例句：

• The old woman was weaving on her loom.那位老太太正在织布机上织布。
• The shuttle flies back and forth on the loom.织布机上梭子来回飞动。

7 metallic   

adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的

参考例句：

• A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
• He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。

8 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

9 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

10 wizened   

adj.凋谢的；枯槁的

参考例句：

• That wizened and grotesque little old man is a notorious miser.那个干瘪难看的小老头是个臭名远扬的吝啬鬼。
• Mr solomon was a wizened little man with frizzy gray hair.所罗门先生是一个干瘪矮小的人，头发鬈曲灰白。

11 concoctions   

n.编造，捏造，混合物( concoction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We bearrived scientists and tested concoctions of milk, orange juice, and mouthwash. 咱们是科技家，尝试牛奶、橙汁和漱口水的混合物。 来自互联网
• We became scientists and tested concoctions of milk, orange juice, and mouthwash. 我们是科学家，尝试牛奶、橙汁和漱口水的混合物。 来自互联网

12 illustrates   

给…加插图( illustrate的第三人称单数 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明

参考例句：

• This historical novel illustrates the breaking up of feudal society in microcosm. 这部历史小说是走向崩溃的封建社会的缩影。
• Alfred Adler, a famous doctor, had an experience which illustrates this. 阿尔弗莱德 - 阿德勒是一位著名的医生，他有过可以说明这点的经历。 来自中级百科部分

13 intrigues   

n.密谋策划( intrigue的名词复数 )；神秘气氛；引人入胜的复杂情节v.搞阴谋诡计( intrigue的第三人称单数 )；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• He was made king as a result of various intrigues. 由于搞了各种各样的阴谋，他当上了国王。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Those who go in for intrigues and conspiracy are doomed to failure. 搞阴谋诡计的人注定要失败。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

14 acrobats   

n.杂技演员( acrobat的名词复数 )；立场观点善变的人，主张、政见等变化无常的人

参考例句：

• I was always fascinated by the acrobats at the circus. 我总是着迷于马戏团里的杂技演员。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The acrobats' performance drew forth applause from the audience. 杂技演员的表演博得了观众的掌声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 dangle   

v.(使)悬荡，(使)悬垂

参考例句：

• At Christmas,we dangle colored lights around the room.圣诞节时，我们在房间里挂上彩灯。
• He sits on the edge of the table and dangles his legs.他坐在桌子边上，摆动著双腿。

16 nefarious   

adj.恶毒的，极坏的

参考例句：

• My father believes you all have a nefarious purpose here.我父亲认为你们都有邪恶的目的。
• He was universally feared because of his many nefarious deeds.因为他干了许多罪恶的勾当，所以人人都惧怕他。

17 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

18 fiddled   

v.伪造( fiddle的过去式和过去分词 )；篡改；骗取；修理或稍作改动

参考例句：

• He fiddled the company's accounts. 他篡改了公司的账目。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He began with Palestrina, and fiddled all the way through Bartok. 他从帕勒斯春纳的作品一直演奏到巴塔克的作品。 来自辞典例句

19 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

20 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

21 dismantled   

拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消

参考例句：

• The plant was dismantled of all its equipment and furniture. 这家工厂的设备和家具全被拆除了。
• The Japanese empire was quickly dismantled. 日本帝国很快被打垮了。