VOA常速英语2020--百老汇演出要到2021年才会回归

Every year more than 14 million people come to see one of New York city's famous Broadway shows. In 2019 these performances brought in well over 1.7 billion dollars, but since March the theaters have been empty and Broadway could be facing a record-setting year-long break. Theater critic Michael Riedel believes the theaters won't spring back to life until there is a vaccine¹ against covid-19. There is no possibility of Broadway or concerts or anything live any live events coming back until there's a vaccine. One the actors can't do it, because how are you gonna do Romeo and Juliet when they both have masks on. It's gonna you know kill the romance. The musicians do not want to be in the pit of an orchestra until they feel safe going there, because as you know with the vaccine. If you're blowing on the flute², on the trombone, it's going to spread the virus, so they're not going to to go back to work. The most popular Broadway shows like Hamilton Phantom³ of the Opera and Lion King will likely survive the unprecedented⁴ break, but some of the less famous ones might have to close and the sad process has already begun. But even those that survive will have to adjust to the new reality.

每年都会有超过1400万人来到纽约市观看一场著名的百老汇演出。在2019年，百老汇演出带来了超过17亿美元的收入。但自今年三月以来，剧院空空如也，百老汇可能会面临创纪录的长达一年的休息。戏剧评论家迈克尔·利德尔认为，除非治疗新冠肺炎病毒的疫苗被研制出来，否则剧院无法恢复生机。在疫苗问世之前，百老汇演出、音乐会或任何现场演出都不可能回归。演员们无法进行表演，当罗密欧和朱丽叶都带着口罩的时候，会怎么样呢？这会扼杀浪漫。音乐家不会想要被管弦乐团重重包围着，除非疫苗问世，他们觉得安全。乐手们在吹奏长笛、长号时会传播病毒，所以这些演员也不会回去工作。尽管面临前所未有的漫长休息，但像“汉密尔顿”和“狮子王”这样著名的百老汇歌剧依旧能幸存下来，而一些没那么出名的剧目则可能消失，而且这一悲哀的过程已经开始了。即使有些剧目存活了下来，它们也必须去适应新的现实。

The industry will have to review its pricing policy and compensation to those who work behind the scenes, musicians, set and lighting⁵ designers. You cannot reopen Broadway when there's a vaccine and say,"hey, by the way, Hamilton's back on the boards and you pay 1200 dollars to see it." That's not gonna happen. Ticket prices will have to come down to a reasonable level. But how to do that is a tough question for industry leaders. One of the oldest theater companies, the Schubert organization, owns 17 theaters on Broadway. They were forced to furlough a lot of their employees, but have proven resilient over time. The Schubert organization, which is the foundation of Broadway, the anchor of Broadway, that has survived, the Schubert survived the great depression, they survived September 11th, they survived the collapse⁶ of New York city in the 1970s, when the city was perceived as so dangerous nobody would want to come here, they survived certainly hurricane Sandy, they have survived everything. Broadway isn't just about Broadway, but also New York city as well. The industry pumps money into the city and supports thousands of jobs. A vibrant⁷ theater industry funds hotels restaurants and stores near Times Square. For many when Broadway comes back New York city is back, with all its hustle⁸ bustle⁹ and shine. 

业界必须重新审视其定价政策，以及幕后工作者、音乐家、布景和灯光设计师的薪酬。你不可能在百老汇复工，而且疫苗问世的时候，对观众们说，“嗨，顺便说一下，‘汉密尔顿’重回百老汇了，但是你们要花1200美金才能观看。”这是不可能的。票价必须降到合理的水平。但是要如何实现这一点，这对业内领导者来说是一个棘手的问题。舒伯特集团是历史最悠久的戏剧公司之一，在百老汇拥有17家剧院。这些剧院被迫解雇了许多员工，但事实证明，随着时间的推移，他们恢复的不错。舒伯特集团是百老汇的基础，是百老汇的主心骨。舒伯特集团在大萧条中幸存下来，熬过了911事件，挺过了20世纪70年代纽约市的崩溃（当时人们觉得纽约市危机四伏，没有人愿意来到这里），捱过了飓风桑迪。舒伯特集团征服了一切苦难。百老汇不只是百老汇本身的，也是纽约市的。戏剧行业向城市注入了大量资金，并支撑了数千个就业岗位。充满活力的戏剧行业为时代广场附近的酒店、餐馆和商店提供资金。对于许多人来说，百老汇的回归也就意味着纽约的回归，它熙熙攘攘，光彩照人。

For Eugenie Maslow from New York Anna Rice VOA news

VOA新闻，制作人欧根妮·马斯洛，记者安娜·赖斯纽约报道

1 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

2 flute   

n.长笛；v.吹笛

参考例句：

• He took out his flute, and blew at it.他拿出笛子吹了起来。
• There is an extensive repertoire of music written for the flute.有很多供长笛演奏的曲目。

3 phantom   

n.幻影，虚位，幽灵；adj.错觉的，幻影的，幽灵的

参考例句：

• I found myself staring at her as if she were a phantom.我发现自己瞪大眼睛看着她，好像她是一个幽灵。
• He is only a phantom of a king.他只是有名无实的国王。

4 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

5 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

6 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

7 vibrant   

adj.震颤的，响亮的，充满活力的，精力充沛的，(色彩)鲜明的

参考例句：

• He always uses vibrant colours in his paintings. 他在画中总是使用鲜明的色彩。
• She gave a vibrant performance in the leading role in the school play.她在学校表演中生气盎然地扮演了主角。

8 hustle   

v.推搡；竭力兜售或获取；催促；n.奔忙(碌)

参考例句：

• It seems that he enjoys the hustle and bustle of life in the big city.看起来他似乎很喜欢大城市的热闹繁忙的生活。
• I had to hustle through the crowded street.我不得不挤过拥挤的街道。

9 bustle   

v.喧扰地忙乱，匆忙，奔忙；n.忙碌；喧闹

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• There is a lot of hustle and bustle in the railway station.火车站里非常拥挤。