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A better class of musical
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It was, admits Anne Dalton cheerfully, a dangerous thing – foolish, even – to do on the point of becoming 40: give up her job as Head of English at a secondary school to try her luck in the theatre, not as a performer but in the even riskier business of writing musicals.
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When Her Benny was first staged in Liverpool last July in a semi-professional production, it was financed and directed by Anne herself – and every performance saw “house full” signs outside the theatre.
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When the theatre manager saw how successful it was, he told his bosses at Apollo Leisure, which controls 19 theatres around the country. As a result, Her Benny is being presented in a fully-professional production at the Empire for two weeks from next Tuesday.
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If so, the show’s lead roles will continue to be played by operatic tenor Alberto Remedios (Liverpool-born, despite his name) and Sandra Dugdale, who has sung with the English National Opera and in the London production of The Phantom of the Opera.
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‘The fact that it has everything a good classic story should have’, says Anne, ‘a struggle for existence, tears and laughter, cruelty and compassion, sympathetic characters, the differing attitudes of the upper and lower classes, morality and a happy ending.'
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She did that while she was still teaching. Then she and Mike went on holiday. ‘For various reasons it was a disaster as a holiday,’ says Anne. They spent most of their time in the hotel room and Anne filled her hours writing the script.
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“I could do better than that myself,” she declared. And so an interest which soon became an obsession began. But trying to teach by day and compose in her spare time began to affect her health. “I had to give up one or the other, and really there was no contest. Teaching had to go.”
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At that time, it was also chosen as one of five joint winners, out of a worldwide entry of nearly five hundred, of the International Quest for New Musicals award.
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She claims never to have worked so hard in her life as she has these past few weeks, getting everything ready. ‘I sleep well enough at night, because the tension and excitement exhaust me completely. I can’t think of anything else. But I wouldn’t have missed any of it- not a single second!’
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А) That was not her first attempt at writing a musical. Her interests had been created when Mike came home one day with the text and music of a show which had been suggested for the children of his school. He thought it pretty awful and so did Anne.
В) During its one-week run, it got a wildly applauding, whistling, stamping audience of 14,000. Had the show failed, Anne and her headmaster husband, Mike, could have faced debts of £70,000.
С) From her first reading of it, Anne imagined it as a musical. “I could see immediately where the songs should go, so I wrote them first. All nineteen of them”.
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D) Anne already has another musical waiting to be produced, based on The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. “It’s finished and all wrapped up,” she says, “but it’s on the shelf at the moment until we see how Her Benny gets on. ‘She will know soon.
E) Invitations for this have gone out to managers, critics and other important people in the theatre world. The hope is that a national tour will follow.
F) And so it did – and she hasn’t looked back since. The show had its premiere as a concert version in a hotel ballroom. This was followed by amateur performances, and songs from the show were then performed at such non-theatrical venues as the Maritime Museum and Anfield football ground in front of a crowd of nearly 40,000 before a match.
G) Based on a sad XIX century story written by the Reverend Silas К Hocking, it is about two unfortunate children – Benny Bates and his sister, Nelly – who have only their courage and their love for each other to keep them going. What attracted her to it?
H) Anne went from teaching English to creativity when she decided to start writing musicals full-time. Since then, her tuneful adaptation of a little-known book has received enthusiastic reviews. But making the decision to give up teaching was not easy.
I) That was two years ago. Today, as she walks around Liverpool, she can look up at posters proclaiming “Anne Dalton’s Her Benny back by popular demand!”
10. You are going to read two extracts which are concerned in some way with music. For questions 1-4, choose the answer (А, В, С or D) which you think fits best according to the text.
TV Music Programme
The rock music programme Later... With Jools Holland occupies a pretty unique position in music television, in Britain. Certainly there’s no other programme where you can watch a man with a clipboard incompetently interviewing someone on a piano stool, and here the programme has made a successful, if slightly crazy, niche for itself. No teenage pop videos here, no boy bands with carefully marketed brand images or dull-as-dishwater interviews. The programme welcomes the world of rock music with all its mess, its pauses, the unwanted feedback, even the occasional rubbishy nature of some songs.
At times the programme doesn't really seem designed for the viewer's benefit at all. The studio audiences are small, and in some cases rather subdued. The set resembles something from a political discussion programme. It’s a set-up that says “We are musicians, we don’t jump through hoops”, and this works perfectly. It may not be a sumptuous visual feast, but the programme is likely to be the television engagement that makes a musician feel more like an artist and less like a performing seal.
The key figure in all this is presenter/performer Jools Holland himself. So uncomfortable does he appear in front of a camera, that it's extremely hard to credit that he has been a television presenter for the best part of 20 years. As far as the programme is concerned, though, Holland’s style is ideal.
1) Which words in the second paragraph continue the writer’s attack, begun in the first paragraph, on ‘teenage pop’?
A) a political discussion programme;
В) We are musicians;
С) a sumptuous visual feast;
D) like a performing seal.
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2) Which possible slogan for the programme best captures the image it projects to the viewer?
A) A music show with endless variety;
В) Only the best music;
С) Real music with all its imperfections;
D) Music that’s loud and wild.
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Opera Audiences
It was curious to say the least, the sheer hostility with which the recent production of Aida, at the Covent Garden Opera House, was received by some audiences. Opera audiences, at the best of times, enjoy a licence to be rude that elsewhere in the theatrical world would be considered bizarre, so the man who shouted ‘Rubbish!’ was not considered to be behaving in any unseemly fashion. Indeed, he spoke for many.
Patrick Gibson, the director whose work had so irritated the booers, is a grown man who can look after himself, and it is not that I feel in the least outraged on his behalf. But it was not a bad production – indeed, the concession some people have made, that the stage looked beautiful, is to my way of thinking a large one.
What seemed to have annoyed people was an unnatural quality in the acting and movement. Groups moved as on a frieze. Individuals were aware of each other without turning to face each other. Now, I don’t necessarily want to see, say, La Boheme done this way, but for every opera that calls for naturalism there must be 100 in serious need of something else. A voice behind me was complaining, “I mean, he’s just come back from the war, he hasn’t seen her for two years, she hasn’t seen him – she doesn’t look at him, she doesn’t seem pleased …” I thought to myself, “Yes, but they’re Ancient Egyptians. Surely they can be allowed to preserve a little of their ancient mystery”.
3) What does the writer say about public reaction to the production?
A) Even those who were critical admitted that one aspect of it was successful.
В) It was out of character for an audience at this particular theatre.
С) Не disagreed with public sentiment about the scenery.
D) He felt personal sympathy towards the director.
4) What point does the writer make about the non-naturalistic approach adopted by the director?
A) He thinks the approach suits other operas better than it does Aida.
В) He’s not a great fan of the approach but thinks it was appropriate for Aida.
С) It is ill-informed of critics to single out Aida for adopting this approach.
D) It would be unfair to blame the approach for the failure of the production.
11. For questions 1-4, read the following texts about live and recorded music. Answer with a word or short phrase. Then summarise in your own words what advantages, according to the two texts, attending a live concert has over listening to recorded music at home.
Music’s significance for the listener at home has been greatly increased by modern methods of recording. Nevertheless, critics of recorded music are right to point out that repeated hearings of a particular performance may cause the listener to think that the interpretation to which he has become accustomed is the only one possible. Moreover, modern recording techniques, which often, though not invariably, involve repeated “takes” of short sections of a work in order to eliminate minor flaws, may in so doing eliminate spontaneity. Great music requires an emotional commitment from performers which cannot be combined with an obsessional insistence on perfection.
One famous pianist retired from the concert platform at the age of twenty-eight. He deplored the applause at concerts and became increasingly affected by stage fright. In any case, he thought that the concert hall would soon disappear because of progress in the technology of recording. He claimed that the listener at home, by adjusting controls to his or her personal taste, could come closer to an ideal performance and reach a depth of musical experience unattainable at a live concert.
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This pianist’s dislike of performing in public was rooted in his own peculiar temperament. He was predominantly solitary, preferring telephone conversations to face-to-face encounters. However, his ideas should not be dismissed lightly just because of his personal idiosyncrasies. Music can and does affect the listener without having to be experienced live or in the company of others.
1) What, according to the text, is the danger of “an obsessional insistence on perfection” when recording music?
2) Explain in your own words the underlying reasons why the famous pianist disliked performing at concerts.
For me, listening to records has many advantages over concert-going. I choose what I want to hear, when I want to hear it, without having any of the distractions of the concert hall. Even in the case of opera and ballet, the absence of the visual element enables me to appreciate the musical content to a greater degree than would otherwise be possible, and, for this reason, I have often found it helpful to listen to a recording of an opera before I see it for the first time: conversely, when I know an opera well I can visualise the scene as I listen to the recording.
Of course, none of this is to say that a recording can ever completely replace a live performance. The personalities of those taking part and the interaction between the audience and the performers give live performances a character of their own which cannot be reproduced in the studio. Nor can these be retained in recordings of live concerts; indeed all that the latter tends to do is to reveal more clearly the kinds of imperfection one often fails to notice in the concert hall, where one's attention is held by the general momentum of the music. In the last analysis it will always be the live performance which really matters; nevertheless, the satisfaction to be gained from playing records is almost limitless.
3) What allows the writer to have a better appreciation of an opera when listening to it at home rather than a live performance?
4) Which phrase in the first text echoes the “kinds of imperfection”?
12. Render the following extract into English using the vocabulary of the unit. Consult the Appendix if necessary.
Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббер
Историю современного музыкального театра невозможно себе представить без имени британского композитора Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббера. Автора таких
| произведений, как “Иисус Христос Суперзвезда”, “Призрак оперы”, “Кошки”и еще около десятка других успешных работ не зря называют “королем музыкального театра” – его роль в развитии современного мюзикла трудно переоценить. Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббер родился 22 марта 1948 года в Лондоне, в семье профессиональных музыкантов. Его отец, Вильям Ллойд Уэббер, | 
Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббер
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был профессором теории музыки и композиции в Королевском музыкальном колледже, директором Лондонского музыкального колледжа, а также сам писал музыку для органа. Мать, Джин Ллойд Уэббер, преподавала скрипку и фортепиано. Неудивительно, что Эндрю с раннего детства начал проявлять интерес к музыке. В три года он начал играть на скрипке, в шесть – на фортепиано и валторне. К тому времени он уже сочинял собственную музыку, это было гораздо увлекательней, чем исполнять чужую/ Знакомство с мюзиклами произвело огромное впечатление на Ллойд-Уэббера – посмотрев спектакль “Моя прекрасную леди”, он даже создал домашний театр, для которого писал мюзиклы.
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В 1956 году Эндрю поступил в Вестминстерскую школу – одну из самых старых и уважаемых школ в Лондоне. В школе Ллойд-Уэббер серьезно увлекался средневековой историей и архитектурой. Но судьба распорядилась иначе.
21 апреля 1965 года Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббер получил письмо от Тимоти Майлза Биндона Райса (ныне известного широкой публике как Тим Райс) – молодого поэта, в то время работавшего в юридической фирме и страстно хотевшего стать рок-звездой. Прослышав о том, что юному композитору требуется соавтор, умеющий писать стихи, Тим предлагал встретиться и обсудить возможность совместной работы. Последовавшая за этим историческая встреча двух молодых людей положила начало одному из самых талантливых и успешных творческих дуэтов в истории музыкального театра.
Эндрю Ллойд Уэббер и Тим Райт (1971)
| Первая заметная работа Ллойд Уэббера и Райса – Иосиф и его удивительный разноцветный плащ снов (1968). В этом 25-ти минутном представлении в концертной манере, повествующем о библейском Иосифе и его братьях, были использованы джаз, французский шансон, калипсо, |
мелодии кантри и рока. Мюзикл несколько раз показали на студенческой сцене, и он был так хорошо принят, что авторы решили расширить постановку до двух актов по сорок пять минут. В таком виде мюзикл был представлен публике в Лондоне и Нью-Йорке и получил самые одобрительные отзывы.
Мировую известность Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббер получил после выхода в свет в 1970 году их четвертого с Тимом Райсом совместного произведения – рок-оперы “Иисус Христос Суперзвезда”. Заглавная песня, записанная певцом Мюрреем Хэдом, произвела настоящий фурор. Рок-опера о последних днях жизни Иисуса Христа вызвала множество разговоров и споров и стала культовым произведением для целого поколения, не потеряв своей актуальности и в наши дни. “Иисус Христос Суперзвезда” был новым словом в музыкальном театре. Соединение рок-музыки с классическими мотивами, использование современной лексики в текстах, их высокое качество, – все это сделало “Иисуса Христа Суперзвезду” настоящим хитом.
В 1976 году Ллойд-Уэббер вместе Тимом Райсом создают рок-оперу “Эвита” о жене аргентинского президента Хуана Перона, Эве Перон. Написанная целиком в оперной манере, “Эвита” получила премию “Тони” в 1980 за блестящую партитуру Уэббера и прекрасный текст Райса, чьи имена навсегда связаны с песней “Не плачь по мне, Аргентина”. “Эвита” была экранизирована в 1996, в главной роли снялась Мадонна.
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В 1980 году произошла вторая “историческая встреча” – Эндрю познакомился с продюсером Камероном Макинтошем. Вдвоем они открыли новую эпоху в истории музыкального театра – эпоху дорогостоящих, роскошных, высокотехнологичных, масштабных постановок с развитой индустрией продажи сопутствующих сувениров. “Кошки”, “Звездный экспресс”, “Призрак оперы” были не только яркими, красивыми и оригинальными шоу с замечательной музыкой, но и тщательно спланированными, хорошо продуманными коммерческими проектами. “Кошки”, танцевальное шоу на основе цикла стихов Томаса Элиота, сделало своего автора миллионером и стало самым долгоиграющим мюзиклом за всю историю существования этого жанра.
Гениальность Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббера проявляется в его удивительной способности свободно обращаться с различными музыкальными стилями: он соединяет рок и классику, с одинаковой легкостью пародирует оперетту, рок-н-ролл и даже новомодный рэп, он вегда современен и при этом обладает собственным оригинальным стилем. Его дар талантливого мелодиста дополняется умением самостоятельно создавать сложнейшие оркестровки для своих вещей (чем в наше время может похвастаться редкий композитор), а также уникальным театральным “чутьем”.
Эндрю Ллойд-Уэббер живет в своем поместье Сидмонтон, в Хэмпшире. Хранит на полочке 7 наград Тони, 3 Грэмми, 5 наград Лоуренса Оливье, Золотой Глобус, Оскара и Награду Общества Критиков за лучший мюзикл 2000 года, а также другие награды, с трудом поддающиеся перечислению. В 1992 году Эндрю был посвящен в рыцари за заслуги перед родиной и стал именоваться сэром Ллойд Уэббером, а в 1997 году получил лордство и дефис в фамилию (теперь именуется лордом Ллойд-Уэббером, бароном Сидмонтонским).
Композитор состоит в третьем браке: в первый раз он был женат на Саре Тюдор Хьюджил, родившей ему двоих детей, во второй раз – на певице Саре Брайтман, сейчас Ллойд-Уэббер женат на Мэдлин Астрид Гордон, у них трое детей.
13. Render the following extract into English using the vocabulary of the unit.
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