VOA慢速英语2010年-THIS IS AMERICA - 'The Fantasticks' at

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I’m Shirley Griffith.

STEVE EMBER: And I’m Steve Ember. This week on our program, we tell about a musical play that is fifty years old this month.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: "The Fantasticks" first opened on May third, nineteen sixty. It was performed more than seventeen thousand times at the Sullivan Street Playhouse in New York City. It is still the longest-running musical play in the world. The show ended January thirteenth, two thousand two after forty-two years. It closed because operating costs increased. At the same time, ticket sales decreased.

STEVE EMBER: “The Fantasticks” is about young love, children leaving home and what it is like to be a father. Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt wrote "The Fantasticks" in nineteen fifty-nine. They wrote it for a summer production at Barnard College in New York. Nine months later, the show opened at the Sullivan Street Playhouse. "The Fantasticks" continued to play there. The children and grandchildren of those who first saw the play returned to see it.

Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: One reason for the continuing popularity¹ of "The Fantasticks" was that it was different from large musicals playing in Broadway theaters. The Sullivan Street Playhouse is very small. It has only one hundred fifty seats. The people who saw the show were very close to the actors.

"The Fantasticks" has only eight actors. There are only two musicians. The actors' clothes and the settings² on the stage are very simple.

STEVE EMBER: “The Fantasticks” is one of the most widely produced musicals in the world. It has been produced in all fifty American states as well as in sixty-seven countries, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. In two thousand six, a revival³ of “The Fantasticks” opened in the Snapple Theater Center near Times Square in New York. The theater where it is playing was renamed the Jerry Orbach Theater after the actor who starred in the original production.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Now we present some music from the first New York production of "The Fantasticks." Jerry Orbach plays the Narrator. He helps tell the story. Mister⁴ Orbach also plays El Gallo, a handsome robber⁵. The Narrator sings the play's most famous song, "Try to Remember."

(MUSIC)

STEVE EMBER: The Narrator presents the main people in the play. They are a boy named Matt, a girl named Luisa, and their two fathers. Luisa is sixteen years old. She dreams of having more interesting experiences in her life. Rita Gardner plays Luisa. She sings "Much More."

(MUSIC)

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: A wall separates the homes of Matt and Luisa. Their fathers built the wall to keep the young people apart. The fathers really want Matt and Luisa to fall in love. But, they feel that the best way to make this happen is to act as if they disapprove⁶ of any relationship between their two children. The fathers believe children will only do what their parents do not want them to do. The fathers, played by William Larsen and Hugh Thomas, sing about this in "Never Say No."

(MUSIC)

STEVE EMBER: The fathers decide on a plot to bring Matt and Luisa together. They ask El Gallo to try to kidnap⁷ Luisa. Matt fights El Gallo and saves Luisa. He becomes a hero. The young people and their fathers are united. Everyone is happy.

But in the second part of "The Fantasticks," Matt and Luisa discover that their fathers have tricked them. The young lovers⁸ argue. Matt decides to leave Luisa. He wants to travel to other parts of the world. He seeks new experiences. Kenneth Nelson is Matt. He sings "I Can See It."

(MUSIC)

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: The fathers are unhappy that their plot to bring the children together has failed. They discuss the problems of having children. They decide it is easier to grow vegetables than to raise children.

(MUSIC)

STEVE EMBER: Luisa also wants to visit different places. The handsome robber, El Gallo, offers to take her with him to see the world.

(MUSIC)

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: Luisa prepares to go away with El Gallo, but he leaves without her. Matt returns from his travels. He has seen and experienced⁹ many unpleasant things. Both Luisa and Matt have been hurt emotionally¹⁰ by their experiences. Yet they also have grown up.

Matt and Luisa rediscover their love for each other. They sing their song of love, “They Were You.”

(MUSIC)

STEVE EMBER: Our program was written by Shelley Gollust and Jerilyn Watson. Caty Weaver¹¹ was our producer. I'm Steve Ember.

SHIRLEY GRIFFITH: And I’m Shirley Griffith. Transcripts¹², MP3s and podcasts of our programs are at voaspecialenglish.com. You can also post comments on our Web site and on our Facebook page at VOA Learning¹³ English. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

　
 

1 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

2 settings   

n.镶嵌( setting的名词复数 )；环境；装置；（某事、戏剧、小说等的）背景

参考例句：

• to study behaviour in laboratory and naturalistic settings 研究实验室里的以及仿自然环境中的行为
• This machine has two settings: fast and slow. 这种机器有两种可调的速度：快速和慢速。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

3 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。

4 mister   

n.(略作Mr.全称很少用于书面)先生

参考例句：

• Mister Smith is my good friend.史密斯先生是我的好朋友。
• He styled himself " Mister Clean ".他自称是“清廉先生”。

5 robber   

n.抢劫者，强盗，盗贼

参考例句：

• The robber told the woman to come across with her purse.拦路抢劫者勒令那个女人把钱包交出来。
• The robber tried to run away but a man tackled him.强盗企图逃跑，但一个人把他抓住了。

6 disapprove   

v.不赞成，不同意，不批准

参考例句：

• I quite disapprove of his behaviour.我很不赞同他的行为。
• She wants to train for the theatre but her parents disapprove.她想训练自己做戏剧演员，但她的父母不赞成。

7 kidnap   

v.拐，绑架，劫持（某人）

参考例句：

• A pair of robbers were trying to kidnap his wife.两个强盗正试图绑架他的妻子。
• They were intelligent and educated,yet they chose to kidnap and kill.他们聪明且有教养，却选择去绑架和杀人。

8 lovers   

爱好者( lover的名词复数 )； 情人； 情夫； 情侣

参考例句：

• They were off-screen lovers. 他们是真实生活中的情侣。
• Shakespeare's star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet 罗密欧和朱丽叶这一对莎士比亚笔下命运多舛的恋人

9 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

10 emotionally   

adv.感情上，情绪上，冲动地

参考例句：

• a special school for emotionally disturbed children 为精神异常儿童开办的特殊学校
• A wide range of emotionally stressful events may trigger a relapse. 多种令人情绪紧张的事情都可能引起旧病复发。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

12 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句

13 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。