外國人最想和你聊的文化話題：百老匯

　Realize Broadway　認(rèn)識百老匯
     1　百老匯簡介
     Broadway, as the name implies, is a wide avenue in New York City, and is the oldest north-south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to the first New Amsterdam settlement. The name Broadway is an English translation of the Dutch name, Breede weg. The street is famous as the pinnacle of the American theater industry.
     Broadway originated as an Indian trail called the Wickquasgeck Trail, which was carved into the brush land of Manhattan. This trail originally snaked through swamps and rocks along the length of Manhattan Island. Upon the arrival of the Dutch, the trail soon became the main road through the island from New Amsterdam at the southern tip. The Dutch explorer and entrepreneur David de Vries gives the first mention of it in his journal in the year 1642.
     Broadway runs the length of Manhattan, being the only street running from almost the southern tip of the island, to the northern tip. South of Columbus Circle, it is a one-way street with all vehicle traffic traveling southbound. It crosses Spuyten Duyvil Creek via the Broadway Bridge and continues through the Bronx to Westchester County.
     Broadway continues running through several Hudson River towns as U.S. Route 9, before becoming the "New York-Albany Post Road", and running through the state capital, Albany, terminating in Champlain, New York at the Canadian border. Diagonally crossing the Commissioners Plan of 1811 of Manhattan streets, its intersections with avenues have been marked by "squares" and induced some interesting architecture, such as the famous Flatiron Building.
     A view up Broadway from Bowling Green, with the Chrysler Building visible in the background. The section of lower Broadway from its origin at Bowling Green to City Hall Park is the historical location for the city's ticker-tape parades, and is sometimes called the "Canyon of Heroes" during such events. West of Broadway as far as Canal Street was the city's fashionable residential area until circa 1825; landfill has more than tripled the area and the Hudson shore now lies far to the west, beyond TriBeCa and Battery Park City.
     2　一些著名歌劇和簡介
     1. Cats(貓) has been translated into more than 20 languages and has been shown around the world. It tells the story of the Jellicle Cats and their life stories.
     2. The Phantom of the Opera (歌劇魅影) has been the longest running show in the history of Broadway. Running continuously since 1988-21 years-it has been a consistent sell-out and favorite for many of those visiting New York City. The show tells the dramatic story of a disfigured man who haunts the Paris Opera House. He falls in love with Christine Daae and trains her to sing like an angel.
     3. Les Miserables (悲慘世界) based on the 1862 novel of the same title by Victor Hugo, is the longest running play in London. Set in the period of social unrest during the French Revolution, the themes of the book and play are discussed in high school classes the world over.
     4. Rent (吉屋出租) is a rock musical that tells the story of poor
     young artists living in New York. The musical, along with winning a Tony Award for Best Musical has also won a Pulitzer Prize. Rent became famous for its appeal to a younger audience.
     5. The Lion King (獅子王) maintains a place at the top of the lists for the "longest-running musicals" and "winners of many viewers"choice awards. The musical is mostly along the lines of the animated Disney movie and is appealing to young children and families.
     6. Wicked (壞女巫)though not as long-standing as some of these other productions, this new musical has the audience seeing green. It was selected by viewers as the best musical of 2007. The musical has broken box-office records around the world. It was also named by Time magazine as the "Best Musical of the Year". Wicked tells the story of what Oz was like, long before Dorothy got there.
     百老匯可以說是喜歡歌劇的人的圣地，基本上世界出名的歌劇都從那里誕生，很多知名的藝人也從那里開始走上星途。百老匯已經(jīng)成了美國的一個不可或缺的藝術(shù)圣地，現(xiàn)在，越來越商業(yè)化的百老匯吸引了很多的海外游人。
Part 2　Key words ＆ Sentences　關(guān)鍵詞語全知道
     "Broadway" actually has three meanings：The first concept is a geographical concept that refers to an area within 12 blocks of 36 theaters near to Time Square. The second meaning is the performances playing on Broadway. The third notion is the theater industry in America.
     "百老匯"實際上有三個含義：第一個概念是一個地理概念，是指在時代廣場附近有著36個劇院的12個街區(qū)。第二個意義是在百老匯表演的歌劇。第三個概念是美國的歌劇產(chǎn)業(yè)。
     Broadway runs twenty-five kilometers length of Manhattan, being the only street almost running through the island from north to south. At present the "Broadway area" refers to four theatres：Marquis, Palace, Winter Garden and Broadway along the Broadway avenue, from Manhattan West 41st Street go north to West 53rd Street. And the forest of theaters around "Broadway area" also belongs to it.
     百老匯位于曼哈頓島上，有2500公里長，是唯一的從北到南貫穿曼哈頓島的街道。目前，"百老匯區(qū)"是指沿著百老匯大街的四個劇院：侯爵劇院、故宮劇院、冬日花園劇院和百老匯劇院，分布于曼哈頓西41街到北邊的西53街。同時圍繞著"百老匯區(qū)"的劇院森林也屬于百老匯區(qū)。
     With the changes and developments in the history and culture, Broadway has become synonymous with the theater and drama.
     隨著歷史文化的變化和發(fā)展，百老匯已成為了劇院和戲劇的代名詞。
     The most famous plays in Broadway are Cat, Beauty and Beast, the Phantom of the Opera, The Lion King, Misérables Les, Miss Siagon, Titanic, etc.
     最有名的戲劇是《貓》、《美女與野獸》、《歌劇魅影》、《獅子王》、《悲慘世界》、《萊斯小姐》、《泰坦尼克號》等。
     In those musical plays, songs and dances are fully integrated into well-made stories. The purpose is not only to let the audience laugh but also to arouse their true feelings.
     這些音樂劇的歌曲和舞蹈與制作精良的故事有機(jī)結(jié)合，目的就是除了讓觀眾發(fā)笑以外還能夠喚起他們的真實情感。
     For the last 100 years, the Broadway theatre district in New York City has been the center of the live entertainment industry in the United States and across the Western World. Broadway has become a global brand, marking the pinnacle of live performances.
     在過去的100年，位于紐約的百老匯劇院區(qū)一直是美國和整個西方世界的現(xiàn)場娛樂表演業(yè)的中心。百老匯已經(jīng)成為一個全球品牌，標(biāo)志著現(xiàn)場表演的巔峰。
     Each year Producers and actors, technical and creative talents travel from across the world to New York City in the hope of becoming one of the very few but succeed on Broadway.
     每年世界各地的制片人、演員、技術(shù)人員以及其他具有創(chuàng)新精神的人才，懷揣著成為百老匯極少數(shù)成功人士的希望來到紐約。
     People use Broadway to refer to the essence of American drama. Everyday it attracts thousands of people from all over the world.
     人們用百老匯這個詞來指美國戲劇的本質(zhì)。每天它吸引了數(shù)以千計來自世界各地的游客。
     Laughter, tears, pride, decadent here can be seen everywhere. You may overnight become a pauper from a millionaire.
     歡笑、淚水、驕傲，頹廢在這里到處可以看到。你可能在一夜之間從百萬富翁變成窮光蛋。