My fair lady
Special mention must be made of the musical “My Fair Lady” which was based on the play “Pygmalion”. It was staged in 1954 on Broadway (New York) and was one great success there and abroad. It ran longer and was seen by more people than any other American musical comedy. The show was played at packed theatres all over the world. The success of “My Fair Lady” was tremendous thanks to Alan Lerner who wrote the script and lyrics, and Frederic Loewe, who wrote the splendid music, and certainly to Bernard Shaw, whose play the script was based on.
Ten years passed the American Studio Warners Bros released the colour wide-screen musical “My Fair Lady”. And again audiences were delighted with its tunes, and Shaw’s 50-year-old play seemed as interesting as it was to our grandfathers. The film was beautifully costumed and creatively set. Audrey Hepburn, as Eliza Doolittle, beautiful and charming, was quite proper.
Words & Expressions:
to run – идти (о пьесе)
packed – переполненный
tremendous – грандиозный
lyrics – тексты песен
to release – выпускать
tune - мелодия
Questions:
Why did B. Shaw decide to write plays?
How many plays did he write during his lifetime?
What play brought Shaw world-wide fame and the reputation of the most brilliant playwright?
When was “Pygmalion” staged on Broadway?
Who wrote music for the musical “My Fair Lady”?
Have you seen the film “My Fair Lady”?
O scar wilde
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was a popular Irish poet, novelist and dramatist. Wilde’s parents were successful Dublin intellectuals. Their son became fluent in French and German early in life. Oscar Wilde studied at university first at Dublin, then at Oxford. After university, Wilde moved to London into fashionable cultural and social circles. He tried his hand at various literary activities: he published a book of poems, lectured in the United States of America and Canada on the new “English Renaissance in Art”, and then returned to London where he worked as a journalist.
In
the early 1890s Wilde became one of London’s most popular
playwrights. Today he is remembered for his epigrams, plays and short
stories. The most famous works include his only novel ‘The Picture
of Dorian Gray’ (1890), comedies ‘The Importance of Being
Earnest’ (1895) and ‘An Ideal Husband’ (1899), as well as some
excellent short stories like ‘The Happy Prince and Other Stories’
(1888).
His short story ‘The Canterville Ghost’ (1887) is about an American ambassador and his family who buy a haunted house.
At eleven o’clock the family went to bed, and by half-past all the lights were out. Some time after, Mr Otis woke up because of a noise outside his room. It sounded like the clank of metal. He got up at once, struck a match and looked at the time. It was exactly one o’clock. Mr Otis was quite calm. The strange noise continued, and with it he heard the sound of footsteps. He put on his slippers, took a small bottle out of his dressing case and opened the door. Right in front of him he saw an old man. He looked terrible. His eyes were red. His hair was long and grey. His clothes were old-fashioned and dirty, and there were handcuffs and rusty chains on his wrists and ankles.
“My dear sir,” said Mr Otis, “those chains need oiling. Here take this small bottle of lubricant. I will leave it here for you and I will give you more if you need it.” With these words the ambassador put the bottle down on a marble table, and went back to bed, closing the door behind him.
Words & Expressions:
intellectuals – интеллигенция
“English Renaissance in Art” – «Ренессанс английского искусства»
‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ – «Портрет Дориана Грея»
‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ – «Как важно быть серьезным»
‘An Ideal Husband’ – «Идеальный муж»
‘The Happy Prince and Other Stories’ – «‘Счастливый принц’ и другие сказки»
‘The Canterville Ghost’ – «Кентервильское привидение»
an ambassador – посол
a haunted house – дом с привидением
clank – бряцание
Exercise. Use these words to complete the sentences.
clank of metal, ambassador, struck a match, haunted house, handcuffs, ghost, rusty chains, lubricant
Mr Otis was an … .
Mr Otis bought a … .
Mr Otis woke up because of the … .
Outside his bedroom, he saw a … with … and … .
Mr Otis gave the ghost … .
Questions:
Who was that strange old man?
What sounds did Mr Otis hear?
Which sentence best describes the picture?
What do you think happened afterwards? Continue the story.
Have you read any stories by Oscar Wilde?
Exercise.
Read the story in the characters
Choose the character and play the story