Crosstalk(相声), a traditional form of comic storytelling, is making a comeback in China's tea houses and theaters．
Audiences can laugh the night away every Saturday at the Qianxiangyi Teahouse in Tianjin, entertained by the apprentices(学徒)of Hou Baolin, Ma Sanli or Yin Shoushan－all leading crosstalk artists of years past－for only 20 yuan(＄2.40)．
The success in Tianjin has also caused the rejuvenation(复活)of crosstalk in Beijing and other places．
Although the art form originated in Beijing in the Qing Dynasty(1644－1911), Tianjin became a place where rising stars formed their styles and new pieces were tried out．The city was well－known nationwide for the quality of its crosstalk performances．
Known in Chinese as xiangsheng(literally,“face and voice”), crosstalk was the predominant(支配的)form of comedy throughout most of the 20th century．In the old days in Tianjin and elsewhere, temple fairs and markets were the main places for crosstalkers to perform, although they occasionally also appeared in teahouses or theaters．
Crosstalk pieces draw on every aspect of Chinese culture, from history and folk tales to social issues of the time．Although there're hundreds of traditional pieces, they're constantly rewritten to suit the times and the audience, while new works are written as well．It's one of the features that have made crosstalk a public art form throughout its history．
“Crosstalk was in the doldrums(萎靡不振)with competition from other art forms, especially TV,”said Wang Xiaochun, headmaster of the Northern Storytelling Arts School of China(NSAS)．“But it has regained its status with crosstalk fans, especially young people, growing aware of its rare qualities．”
“More and more students are coming to NSAS to study crosstalk, including some girl students,”said Wang,“They're sure that crosstalk will have a strong market．”
(1)
Crosstalk means“________”in Chinese．
[ ]
A．
storytelling
B．
face and voice
C．
folk tale
D．
dialogue
(2)
According to the text, crosstalk is so popular throughout its history because ________．
[ ]
A．
it is constantly changed and renewed
B．
it is often performed at temple fairs
C．
it is different from other arts
D．
it is comic and humourous
(3)
Crosstalk makes a comeback mainly because ________．
[ ]
A．
it is a popular traditional art after all
B．
the pieces contain some famous folk tales
C．
the crosstalkers make it return to teahouses
D．
the pieces are made to suit the times and the audience
(4)
We can learn that the future of crosstalk first lies in ________．
Throughout the history of the arts, the nature of creativity has remained constant to artists．No matter what objects they select, artists are to bring forth new forces and forms that cause change-to find poetry where no one has ever seen or experienced it before．
Landscape(风景)is another unchanging element of art．It can be found from ancient times through the 17th-century Dutch painters to the 19th-century romanticists and impressionists．In the 1970s Alfred Leslie, one of the new American realists, continued this practice．Leslie sought out the same place where Thomas Cole, a romanticist, had produced paintings of the same scene a century and a half before．Unlike Cole who insists on a feeling of loneliness and the idea of finding peace in nature, Leslie paints what he actually sees．In his paintings, there is no particular change in emotion, and he includes ordinary things like the highway in the background．He also takes advantage of the latest developments of color photography(摄影术)to help both the eye and the memory when he improves his painting back in his workroom．
Besides, all art begs the age-old question： What is real?Each generation of artists has shown their understanding of reality in one form or another．The impressionists saw reality in brief emotional effects, the realists in everyday subjects and in forest scenes, and the Cro-Magnon cave people in their naturalistic drawings of the animals in the ancient forests．To sum up, understanding reality is a necessary struggle for artists of all periods．
Over thousands of years the function of the arts has remained relatively constant．Past or present, Eastern or Western, the arts are a basic part of our immediate experience．Many and different are the faces of art, and together they express the basic need and hope of human beings．
(1)
The underlined word “poetry” most probably means ________．
[ ]
A．
an object for artistic creation
B．
a collection of poems
C．
an unusual quality
D．
a natural scene
(2)
Leslie's paintings are extraordinary because．
[ ]
A．
they are close in style to works in ancient times
B．
they look like works by 19th-century painters
C．
they draw attention to common things in life
D．
they depend heavily on color photography
(3)
What is the author's opinion of artistic reality?
[ ]
A．
It will not be found in future works of art．
B．
It does not have a long-lasting standard．
C．
It is expressed in a fixed artistic form．
D．
It is lacking in modern works of art．
(4)
What does the author suggest about the arts in the last paragraph?
[ ]
A．
They express people's curiosity about the past．
B．
They make people interested in everyday experience．
C．
They are considered important for variety in form．
D．
They are regarded as a mirror of the human situation．
(5)
Which of the following is the main topic of the passage?
[ ]
A．
History of the arts．
B．
Basic questions of the arts．
C．
New developments in the arts．
D．
Use of modern technology in the arts．
阅读理解
Throughout the history of the arts, the nature of creativity has remained constant to artists．No matter what objects they select, artists are to bring forth new forces and forms that cause change-to find poetry where no one has ever seen or experienced it before．
Landscape(风景)is another unchanging element of art．It can be found from ancient times through the 17th-century Dutch painters to the 19th-century romanticists and impressionists．In the 1970s Alfred Leslie, one of the new American realists, continued this practice．Leslie sought out the same place where Thomas Cole, a romanticist, had produced paintings of the same scene a century and a half before．Unlike Cole who insists on a feeling of loneliness and the idea of finding peace in nature, Leslie paints what he actually sees．In his paintings, there is no particular change in emotion, and he includes ordinary things like the highway in the background．He also takes advantage of the latest developments of color photography(摄影术)to help both the eye and the memory when he improves his painting back in his workroom．
Besides, all art begs the age-old question：What is real?Each generation of artists has shown their understanding of reality in one form or another．The impressionists saw reality in brief emotional effects, the realists in everyday subjects and in forest scenes, and the Cro-Magnon cave people in their naturalistic drawings of the animals in the ancient forests．To sum up, understanding reality is a necessary struggle for artists of all periods．
Over thousands of years the function of the arts has remained relatively constant．Past or present, Eastern or Western, the arts are a basic part of our immediate experience．Many and different are the faces of art, and together they express the basic need and hope of human beings．
(1)
The underlined word“poetry”most probably means ________．
[ ]
A．
an object for artistic creation
B．
a collection of poems
C．
an unusual quality
D．
a natural scene
(2)
Leslie's paintings are extraordinary because ________．
[ ]
A．
they are close in style to works in ancient times
B．
they look like works by 19th-century painters
C．
they draw attention to common things in life
D．
they depend heavily on color photography
(3)
What is the author's opinion of artistic reality?
[ ]
A．
It will not be found in future works of art．
B．
It does not have a long-lasting standard．
C．
It is expressed in a fixed artistic form．
D．
It is lacking in modern works of art．
(4)
What does the author suggest about the arts in the last paragraph?
[ ]
A．
They express people's curiosity about the past．
B．
They make people interested in everyday experience．
C．
They are considered important for variety in form．
D．
They are regarded as a mirror of the human situation．
(5)
Which of the following is the main topic of the passage?
[ ]
A．
History of the arts．
B．
Basic questions of the arts．
C．
New developments in the arts．
D．
Use of modern technology in the arts．
阅读理解
Throughout the history of the arts, the nature of creativity has remained constant to artists．No matter what objects they select, artists are to bring forth new forces and forms that cause change－to find poetry where no one has ever seen or experienced it before．
Landscape(风景)is another unchanging element of art．It can be found from ancient times through the 17th-century Dutch painters to the 19th-century romanticists and impressionists．In the 1970s Alfred Leslie, one of the new American realists, continued this practice．Leslie sought out the same place where Thomas Cole, a romanticist, had produced paintings of the same scene a century and a half before．Unlike Cole who insists on a feeling of loneliness and the idea of finding peace in nature, Leslie paints what he actually sees．In his paintings, there is no particular change in emotion, and he includes ordinary things like the highway in the background．He also takes advantage of the latest developments of color photography(摄影术)to help both the eye and the memory when he improves his painting back in his workroom．
Besides, all art begs the age-old question：What is real? Each generation of artists has shown their understanding of reality in one form or another．The impressionists saw reality in brief emotional effects, the realists in everyday subjects and in forest scenes, and the Cro-Magnon cave people in their naturalistic drawings of the animals in the ancient forests．To sum up, understanding reality is a necessary struggle for artists of all periods．
Over thousands of years the function of the arts has remained relatively constant．Past or present, Eastern or Western, the arts are a basic part of our immediate experience．Many and different are the faces of art, and together they express the basic need and hope of human beings．
(1)
Leslie's paintings are extraordinary because _________．
[ ]
A．
they are close in style to works in ancient times
B．
they look like works by 19th-century painters
C．
they draw attention to common things in life
D．
they depend heavily on color photography
(2)
What is the author's opinion of artistic reality?
[ ]
A．
It will not be found in future works of art．
B．
It does not have a long-lasting standard．
C．
It is expressed in a fixed artistic form．
D．
It is lacking in modern works of art．
(3)
What does the author suggest about the arts in the last paragraph?
[ ]
A．
They express people's curiosity about the past．
B．
They make people interested in everyday experience．
C．
They are considered important for variety in form．
D．
They are regarded as a mirror of the human situation．
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