FCE topics: 6 ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

contents

Art and entertainment

Reading and Use of English: Multiple matching (Part6)

Language development: Relative clauses

Writing: review (part 2)

Speaking: Vocabulary: Art and entertainment.

Long turn (Part2)

Listening: Multiple choice (Part 1)

Language development: Adjective/Noun + preposition; be/get used to + -ing:

Word formation: Verb + noun collocations

Reading and Use of English: Open cloze (Part2)

Review

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Reading and Use of English: Multiple matching (Part6)

You are going to read an article about new types of university courses. Seven sentences have been removed from the article. Choose from the sentences A-G the one which fits each gap. There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.

A We have local apocalypses in our world today, in the form of earthquakes, hurricanes and terrorist attacks. B TV shows have long launched spin-off products in the form of merchandise and video games. C If successful, the edutainment experiment could spawn a huge range of other TV show/university hybrid courses. D Until now, online learning experiences have been able to deliver great videos and quizzes, but student interaction was minimal and the experience for learners has been impersonal. E Experts from the Centre for Education and Employment have reservations about the value of such online courses where there is no formal assessment or contact between the students and those delivering the courses. F The course will consist of eight modules including a physics module on ‘the science of decay’, a public health module on the study of epidemics and a mathematics module on population dynamics. G The University of California, which has a huge reputation to uphold, said that there had been no dumbing down in the design of the course.

Online Courses The boundaries between education and entertainment are beginning to blur, and a new type of learning, in which education merges with entertainment, is emerging ‘edutainment’1________. But now US television company AMC has teamed up with the University of California to produce an online course based on the TV show, The Walking Dead, which features a post-apocalyptic world ridden with zombies. With an audience of 10 million, student numbers for the course are expected to be in the hundreds of thousands._2________. Academics from the University of California say that the online course will be a ‘legitimate educational experience’ and tackle serious issues from the fields of science, public health, nutrition, psychology and sociology. 3_______ .However, students will gain no formal qualifications or credits on successful completion of the course. _4____ It insisted that all modules had been made as academically rigorous as those taught on the university grounds. One lecturer in social science stated that the university already used contemporary media examples to make theories more relevant to students, and this course was merely taking this concept one step further.

‘The curriculum is very real,’ says Josh Coates, head of Infrastructure and designer of the online platform. 5_____ ‘The fact that the context is this fictional world of an apocalypse is incidental. This course gives us the opportunity to educate people about the science of disasters.’ The market for massive open online courses, or MOOCs, is rapidly expanding. Millions of students sign up for online education courses each year. However, millions fail to complete the courses, suggesting that they pose a real challenge to online learners. Part of this experiment is to find out whether the power of television can reduce the high drop-out rate characteristic of MOOCS. The university is taking this opportunity to hone the way it delivers online courses.____ _6________ With the increasing demand for online courses, these are issues that universities looking to invest in online learning are increasingly having to face.

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Language development: Relative clauses

Relative Pronouns and Relative Clauses

Here are three pieces of information. There is a man. He lives next to the bank. He is a postman. Now, we can join these three sentences together using a relative pronoun: The man who lives next to the bank is a postman. A relative clause is part of a sentence which tells us more information about a person or thing. Here are three other sentences. There is a restaurant. We went there last night. It was very expensive. Which we can combine using a different relative pronoun:

Relative Pronouns and Relative Clauses

We can use different relative pronouns depending if we are talking about a person, a place or a possession. The man whose car was stolen last night is at the police station. The town where Copernicus was born also invented gingerbread. The politician who won the election was a communist. The dog that/which bit me was a labrador.

Now look at these sentences. You looked at a girl. She was blonde. A girl looked at you. She was blonde. In the first pair of sentences, the blonde girl is the object of the sentence. In the second pair of sentences, the blonde girl is the subject. When we use relative pronouns to join sentences like this, we don't have to include the relative pronoun that is the object: You looked at a girl. She was blonde. (object) We can write: The girl you looked at was blonde. but A girl looked at you. She was blonde. (subject) We must write: The girl who looked at you was blonde.

We have to include the relative pronoun if it is the subject of a sentence. The restaurant you like is near the bank. (relative pronoun omitted - object) The restaurant which opens late is near the bank. (relative pronoun included - subject)

Now we will consider two different types of relative clauses. What is the difference between these two sentences: My sister who lives in Rome is a teacher. My sister, who lives in Rome, is a teacher. There doesn't seem to much of a difference! In the second sentence, there are a pair of commas as the information in bold is extra. It's not important to understanding which sister. This means that in the first sentence, the person has more than one sister and only the one in Rome is a teacher. In the second sentence, the person has only one sister and, extra information, she is a teacher.

The relative clause in the first sentence in called a defining clause as it defines, it tells us exactly which person or thing we are talking about. The relative clause in the second sentence is called a non-defining clause as it only gives us extra, non-crucial information.

Defining We tried that restaurant which you told us. People who spit in the street make me sick. Jobs that are interesting and pay well are hard to find. In these sentences, without the relative pronouns, we don't know which restaurant, which people or which type of job. Non-defining We tried Ristorante Italia, which you told us about. Danish people, who are blond and tall, speak a wonderful language. My job, which I've had for ten years, was hard to find

In these sentences, though, we don't need the extra information given to us by the relative clause. We know it is Ristorante Italia, Danish people and "my" job. One easy way of seeing this difference is to see if the sentence makes sense if you take away the relative clause: We can't say: People make me sick. But we can say: Danish people speak a wonderful language.

The bands which dominated Western popular music in the T960s were the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, although the one singer who had the most influence was probably the 'protest' singer Bob Dylan. ln the 1970s and BOs popular music moved in different directions. There were singers like Elton John, whose piano-based pop songs were hugely popular, the reggae artist, Bob Marley, who had a huge hit with 'No woman, no cry', and there was highly polished disco music. ln reaction, punk bands, and the records they made were crude and aggressively anti-establishment. ln the 1990s and the 2000s decades in which 'boy bands' and 'gul bands' became popular, music fashion was heavily influenced by hip hop, which was an Afro-American musical movement from New York that just emerged in the 1970s.

defining relative clauses

non-defining relative clauses

Complete the sentences with relative pronouns and add commas where necessary. Show where two different pronouns could be used and where the pronoun could be omitted. 1 The singer Katy Perry_______ real name is Katheryn Hudson grew up in a strict religious family. Katy _______ heard very little pop music as a child started her career n Gospel music. 2 The X Factor is a British television program ______ members of the public ______ would be singers are given the opportunity to present their talents. It is the program in ________ the popular British girl band Little Mix first appeared. 3 The rock band Snow Patrol was formed in 1994 in Scotland ______ two of its original members were studying at the time. Both of them were born in lreland so it's not surprising that the band ______ they admire most is the Irish rock band U2.

Expand the sentences about the Latin American dance music salsa by adding the extra information in brackets. Use relative clauses and add commas where necessary. I Salsa is a mixture of Spanish Caribbean rhythms and styles. (salsa means 'sauce' in Spanish ) 2 The salsa band La Sonora Carruseles was formed in Colombia in 1995. (Their songs are played in salsa dance clubs everywhere.) 3 The singer Gloria Estefan uses salsa rhythms in many of her songs. (She was born in Cuba but now lives 1n the USA.) 4 The Puerto Rican American Víctor Manuelle is often thought of as a romantic salsa singer (His career began when he was discovered by salsa superstar Gilberto Santa Rosa.) 5 The album Travesía was a huge success with Manuelle's fans. (in it he improvises vocals and lyrics within a salsa tune.)

Reduce relative clauses

Some relative clauses can be reduced to participle clauses. A A present participle clause (-ing) can replace: - a relative clause in the present or past continuous. The woman singing that song is a famous actress (The woman who is singing ..) The car going round the corner was the new BMW. (The car which was going ...) - a relative clause describing a permanent state. The people living in that housework in the theatre. (The people who live ...) The flat belonging to my brother was the nicest. (The flat which belonged ...) B A past participle clause can replace a passive relative clause. AllTVs sold in this shop have a one-year guarantee. (AllTVs which are sold ...) The video released last week (The video that was released has sold a million.)

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Writing: review (part 2)

review

There are lots of different possibilities, but the most common topics are books, TV shows, or films/movies; but it’s also possible that you might have to write a review of a restaurant, hotel, language school, device/gadget, music album, live music performance etc… In fact, anything you can think of that you may have read a review about in the past could appear in the exam. But as I mentioned earlier – the most common are Books, TV shows, or Films/movies – so definitely focus on these.

Make a plan

The plan doesn’t need to be very detailed – just some short notes on what you want to include in each paragraph. You will usually need four paragraphs, but you could write three if you feel there are some ideas that can be grouped together, but four would be ideal.

Make a plan

1) You will want to begin by giving some factual details about the item you’re reviewing – for example: the author/writer, the main actors involved, the publication/release date etc… 2) Next you will want to give some brief details about the content of the item. So, if you’re writing about a book you should give a short summary of what happens in the story (but do try to avoid Spoilers!), and you could also explain who the main characters are and what their goals or motivations are within the story. 3) Your third paragraph should cover the specific things the task has asked you to include, and focus on the most positive aspects of the item. (Reviews are always Positive, in all my years’ experience I don’t recall ever seeing a Negative Review in the exam). 4) And finally, in your conclusion you’ll give your final opinion on the item and make your recommendations to the reader.

Formal or Informal English?

Reviews can be written mainly in Informal English, so contractions and phrasal verbs are perfectly fine to use – but you can throw in a sentence or two of more Formal English for emphasis. When you have a sentence using a formal grammar structure in the middle of a piece of informal writing, it really stands out and provides a strong emphasis, so this would be appropriate in a review. The most important language thing to consider in a review is topic specific vocabulary – so for example if you’re writing about a film/movie, you’ll want to include words like: actor, cast, crew, script, special effects, director, cinematography, soundtrack etc…

How to organise your time

You should spend about 40 minutes on Part 2 of the exam (and 40 minutes on Part 1). It is up to you exactly how you arrange your time, but I would suggest something like this: 5-10 minutes – Plan and think of ideas 20-25 minutes – Write 5-10 minutes – Check for spelling/grammar mistakes

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I don’t write enough words?

What happens if I write too many words?

What if I have never read/watched/listen to an item the task asks me to write about?

Tips

Reviews are a good piece to do because most people have had previous experience of writing reviews – you most probably will have written reviews when you were at school. But a good way to practise is to find reviews in newspapers/magazines or on the internet and to read them to see what kind of information is included and how the review is structured.

avoiding repetition

Read the text. What do the words in italics refer to? We Will Rock You Good musicals make sure (1) their audience feel good when (2) they leave the theatre. ln (3) this amateur production, the acting and singing are wonderful. The actors hit (4) their notes with gusto and give (5) the show all (6) they've got. The youngest (7) ones are the best. You won't know (8) their names but (9) they're as good as any professional. However, (10) these are the plus points. The plot is less than satisfactory. (11) it can't be taken seriously and (12) this is the reason we don't really care about the characters or what happens to (13) them.

avoiding repetition

b Rewrite the sentences, changing the underlined words to avoid repetition. 1 I like The Bodyguard and Les Misérables. The Bodyguard and and Les Misérables both musicals. 2 The Bodyguard is on at the Adelphi. The Adelphi is a lovely theatre. We've been to the Adelphi. 3 l'd love to see The Lion King but I can't afford to see The Lion King. 4 Can you get me tickets for Friday? l've got a day off on Friday. 5 These seats are quite near the stage but the seats over there are nearer.

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Speaking: Vocabulary: Art and entertainment

Art and entertainment

Look at the photos, which show two kinds of art, and answer the questions. 1 Which one shows modern art and which one shows classical art? 2 Do you go to art galleries and art exhibitions?

Choose the correct answers. 1 l'm very interested / keen on landscape painting. 2 I can't see the point / couldn't care less of abstract painting. 3 | thought his portraits were fascinating / fascinated. 4 Those sketches really appeal / interest to me. 5 This watercolour is nothing special / wonderful. 6 I absolutely / completely adore her drawings. 7 She's really into / onto sculpture in a big way.

documentary

current affairs

chat show

quiz show

reality show

sitcom

soap opera

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Long turn (Part2)

Which of the two kinds of art do you prefer?

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Listening: Multiple choice (Part 1)

You will hear people talking in eight different situations. For questions l-8, choose the best answer 1 You overhear a woman talking on her phone. What is the Purpose of her call? A to thank a friend who's done something for her. B to ask a friend for information about an event. C to invite a friend to something she's organising. 2 You hear part of an arts programme on the radio. What is the speaker talking about? A a film B a stage play C a novel 3 You hear an extract from a radio play. Where is this scene taking place? A in a restaurant B in a hotel reception C in a motorway café

4 You overhear two teenagers discussing a film they have just seen. How does the boy feel about it? A uninterested in the storyline B disappointed by the acting C unimpressed by the photography 5 You overhear two people talking. Who are they talking about? A a close friend B a colleague C a relation 6 You overhear a man talking about an art exhibition. What does he criticise? A the way it is laid out B the information available to visitors C the quality of the works of art on show

7 You hear two people discussing a band's new album. What do they agree on? A how original it is B how enjoyable it is C how exciting it is 8 You hear two people talking about the difficulty of getting cinema tickets. What does the man think the cinema should do for older people? A allow them to book in advance B reduce prices on seats during the day C reserve a number of seats for them

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Language development: Adjective/Noun + preposition, be/get used to + -ing

The Edinburgh Festival lf you are interested (0) in the arts, Edinburgh in August is the place to be. Apart from the main international Festival, (1) _ is what is called 'The Fringe', offering 2,100 different shows in over 270 venues throughout the city, many of (2) _ are free. Visitors are often surprised (3) _ the range of shows on offer This includes comedy, cutting-edge theatre, dance, children's shows, and music. As there is no selection committee, (4) _ kind of event is possible, and the quality varies. While many high-profile performers take part, the vast majority (5) _ a mixture of unknown professionals, actors, and students, who use the festival as a way of bringing their talents (6) _ an audience for the first time. indeed, many well-known comics first appeared there (7) student productions. ln recent years many new audiences have been drawn almost exclusively to stand-up comics and some regular visitors are disappointed (8) _ this trend. However, as comedy is very much in fashion, they will have to get used to it.

Adjective/Noun + preposition

A Adjective + preposition I'm tired of walking around this exhibition It's unusual for him to be late. B Noun + preposition Congratulations on an excellent performance! I have no doubt about the artist’s talents. C Some adjectives and nouns go with different prepositions, with a change in meaning. He's good at acting. (- He is skillful.) Relaxation is good for you. (- lt benefits you.) That's very good of you. (= You are kind and thoughtful.) My sister’s good with children. (- She deals with them well.)

Read the information above and choose the correct answers.

1 What was the result for / on / of the competition? 2 Audiences often feel sorry for / by / with the good guy! 3 I have a lot of respect of / in / for the artists talents. 4 There's no comparison of / with / between those two comedians. 5 l'm puzzled by / of /in what the play meant. 6 Moira always gets involved on / in / of discussions about art. 7 I have difficulty for / in / by understanding modern dance. 8 Your ideas are quite similar in / of /to mine. 9 Ellie was annoyed with / on /in her husband for forgetting the tickets. 10 That comedian's got no hope from / to / of getting an award.

Be/get used to +-ing

I’m Used to eating Spicy food (= accustomed to it) l'm not used to eating sptcy food. (= it's new and strange for me) I can't get used to driving on the left. (= can't get accustomed to, it's difficult) I left home last year. I had to get used to living alone. Compare: I used to watch TV a lot when I was younger but I don't now.

Be/get used to +-ingRead the information above and complete the sentences. Choose the correct answers and then complete the gaps with the correct form of the verbs in brackets.

1 He used / is used / get used to ______ (live) in Hollywood but he moved to Cannes in July. 2 lt took him a long time to used / be used / get used to _______ (live) in France. 3 Katie got tired quickly. She didn't used / wasn't used / didn't get used to _____ (film)so early. 4 lf you want to be an actor; you'll have to used / be used / get used to _______(hear) criticism of your work.

5 Newspapers weren't use / didn’t use / couldn't get used to ______ (print) such awful stories. 6 These days we aren't used / don't used / can't get used to _____ (watch) films in black and white. 7 When he became famous, he had to be used / qet used / used to people________ (stare) at him. 8 l'm exhausted. I don’t used / didn’t use / 'm not used to______ (go) round art galleries.

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Word formation: Verb + noun collocations

The perfect comedy face

Ricky Gervais is a highly (0) inventive British comedian, who rose to fame when he wrote and acted in a funny TV mock documentary series called The Office. In it, Gervais causes great (1)____ as the boss of a paper supply company, whose (2)____ high opinion of his managerial skills and his sense of humour is not shared by his group of (3)___Now, having analyzed the facial characteristics of 20 top comedians, scientists have surprised many by coming to the (4)___ that the perfect comedy face must be (5) ___ soft and feminine, with a small forehead wide nose, large lips and high cheekbones. They say we should not (6) ___ the importance of how comedians come across when we first see them. Their (7)___to appear agreeable and obliging puts us at our ease and encourages us to relax; in fact, the ideal image has an incredible (8) ___ to Ricky Gervais.

INVENT EMBARRASS FANTASY EMPLOY CONCLUDE ATTRACT ESTIMATE ABLE SIMILAR

The perfect comedy face

Penélope Cruz's career in movies has been (0) extraordinarily successful, although she feels she has always had to struggle for (1)____ as an actress because of her looks. As she says, 'Once you are seen as (2) ___, you get called "the pretty woman" and no one takes you seriously.' Nevertheless, in the best films she has made in her native Spain she managed to play some well-rounded(3) characters that people could identify with. ln 2000 Cruz was (4) ___ to resist the call of Hollywood and early on appeared in one or two (5)_____ films there, such as All the Pretty Horses. Now she is an international performer who appears in both Spanish and English language films and many regard her (6) ____ in Pirates of the Caribbean as one of her best later English-language films. ln it she plays a dangerous pirate who not only looks good but also has great (7)_____ of character. Not just a talented actress, Cruz gives generously to charitable (8) _____ and has spent a lot of time as a volunteer in Uganda.

EXTRAORDINARY RECOGNISE GLAMOUR BELIEVE ABLE DISAPPOINT PERFORM STRONG ORGANISE

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

Reading and Use of English: Open cloze (Part2)

verb + noun collocations

say

tell

your mind anything/something (to someone) a language a joke/a story/a secreta prayer someone hello your name someone’s fortune the time the truth/a lie a few words yes/no sense /nonsense /rubbish business /sport/poIitics

speak

talk

verb + noun collocations

Read the information above and correct the mistakes in the sentences. 1 The teacher spoke us a horror story. 2 I can't stand it when artists say politics. 3 We all talked a prayer together. 4 My little sister is lust learning to say the time. 5 My brother talks three languages. 6 Tell he lo to Rosie for me. 7 Mike said the police what he had seen. 8 Don't trust him. He's always speaking lies.

verb + noun collocations

Complete the email with the correct form of say, tell, speak, or talk. Why don't we go to Spain together - for a holiday, perhaps? (1)_______ a little Spanish and t would be fun. Please (2) _______yes but don't (3) ______anything to Jason - he'll be very jealous I like Jason but sometimes he (4) a lot of rubbish last week he (5)____ me that he had seen the musical Le Cirque d'hiver Bouglione in Paris but I knew he was (6)_______ one of his lies again - he's never been to France l didn't (7)________ anything to him at the time because I was ln a hurry but when I get the chance, l'll (8)_______ my mind and (9)_____ _ him exactly what I think about him and his lies OK, I've got to go now Hope you can come!

ART AND ENTERTAINMENT

review

MOVIE REVIEW: The impossible The movie I want to review is The Impossible, directed by Antonio Bayona, it is based on a true story. It pictures a spanish family who decided to go on holiday for Christmas to Thailand. Unexpectedly, they found themselves caught by the most devastating tsunami which has taken place in the last century in the south of Asia, and killed 200.000 people. The main characters were played by Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts. The plot goes from a family having an enjoyable time in the resort to being suddenly in the middle of a natural disaster. Due to the gigantic wave, their resort was flooded and the 5 members of the family got separated. The characters try to do their best to survive and gather again. Actors' performances make you feel the anxiety and fear of being separate can worse than physical injuries. The most positive point of the movie are the special effects that are used to recreate the sequence of the tsunami. I can’t imagine how challenging it must have been to simulate all the scenes. This is a masterpiece of film-making which makes you feel a real chaotic experience. Should you want to know better how a tsunami looks like, this film will give you a closer point of view. It helps to make us understand how fragile humankind can be. Despite the fact that this film is set in 2012 therefore is not very old, let my tell you that you´ll not be disappointed.