Take Away English-The Edinburgh Festival 爱丁堡文化节

A City of Culture 一座文化名城

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland , and has long been a favourite destination of tourists from all over the world, as well as an important cultural and political centre. With its museums, shops, wonderful historic castle, and many pubs and restaurants, there are many things for visitors to enjoy all year round. And of course, as it is in Scotland , there is a wide range of whiskies to try!

A performance of Swan Lake at the Edinburgh Festival

However, there is more to Edinburgh than historic monuments and tourism. Each year, the Edinburgh Festival takes place in the city. In late summer, for three weeks, the festival presents classical music, theatre, opera and dance at six major theatres and concert halls – and several smaller ones – throughout the city. Whatever your cultural tastes , you are sure to find something to enjoy.

Local talent is always represented at the Edinburgh Festival giving Scottish composers and playwrights¹ the opportunity to showcase their work and gain recognition from a wider audience.

In addition, orchestras and theatre companies come from all over the world to perform at the prestigious² festival. Last year saw the arrival of orchestras from the United States and Germany.

The festival has now become an important part of Scotland 's economy as well as its culture. Last year's festival generated over £130 million expenditure³ in Edinburgh alone, and across Scotland nearly 2900 jobs exist as a direct result of the festival.

The festival is so popular that it has become, in some ways, a victim of its own success . The huge interest in performing there led to the setting up of a rival festival, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Fortunately, demand for live entertainment during the summer is so great that both festivals continue to thrive.

The Fringe tends to feature mostly comedy and experimental works. Yet it can lead to great things - many famous and successful comedians⁴ and artists, such as Rowan Atkinson, better known as TV's Mr Bean, started their careers in small venues⁵ at the Fringe.

GLOSSARY 　词汇表
capital city – 首都	pubs – 小酒馆
wide range – 品种繁多的	whiskies – 威士忌
cultural tastes – 文化品味	local talent – 本地人才
composers – 作曲家	playwrights – 剧作家
showcase – 展示	prestigious – 有名望的，有声誉的
economy – 经济	expenditure – 开支，花销
victim of its own success – 自身成功的牺牲品	setting up – 设立，成立
to thrive – 兴旺，茁壮成长	comedy – 喜剧

 

1 playwrights   

n.剧作家( playwright的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We're studying dramatic texts by sixteenth century playwrights. 我们正在研究16 世纪戏剧作家的戏剧文本。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Hung-chien asked who the playwrights were. 鸿渐问谁写的剧本。 来自汉英文学 - 围城

2 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

3 expenditure   

n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗

参考例句：

• The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
• The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。

4 comedians   

n.喜剧演员，丑角( comedian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The voice was rich, lordly, Harvardish, like all the boring radio comedians'imitations. 声音浑厚、威严，俨然是哈佛出身的气派，就跟无线电里所有的滑稽演员叫人已经听腻的模仿完全一样。 来自辞典例句
• He distracted them by joking and imitating movie and radio comedians. 他用开玩笑的方法或者模仿电影及广播中的滑稽演员来对付他们。 来自辞典例句

5 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网