黃忠雪

太陽馬戲團(tuán)被譽(yù)為加拿大的“國寶”，“世界第一馬戲團(tuán)”，成立于1984年。它重新定義了馬戲這種娛樂形式，為全球450余座城市的1.6億名觀眾提供了3000余場演出。

難詞探意

1. aroma / ?r ?m / ?n. 芳香;香味

2. acrobatic / ?kr ?b t k/ ?adj. 雜技的

3. feat /fi t/ ?n. 技藝表演

4. recruit /r ?kru t/ ?v. 吸收（新成員）

Hundreds of audiences recently filed into a popular arena in downtown Atlanta. The aroma of popcorn and cotton-candy filled the air as guests began to take their seats. They were eager to see Cirque du Soleil performers in “Volta，” a show that spotlights extreme sports.

As the lights dimmed， the crowd grew silent. Extraordinary performers dressed in brightly-colored costumes took the stage， putting on acrobatic displays of strength， speed， and skill. Unicycles， trampolines， roller skates， and even BMX bikes were part of the act.

Cirque du Soleil， or “Circus of the Sun，” was founded in 1984 in Montreal， the largest city in Canadas Québec province. After 30 years of constant evolution， Cirque du Soleil is very different from traditional shows. Cirque du Soleil combines a variety of thrilling technical performances and stage installations beyond imagination; it brings the audience more entertainment than usual performance with the accompaniment of the live band. “Its not your regular circus，” said 11-year-old Chelsea from Suwannee， Georgia， who attended the show. She enjoyed watching gravity-defying feats that bordered on superhuman.

Cirque du Soleil mainly recruits professional or high-level athletes to their cast， and they also like to hire people in their early 20s， valuing the energy and fresh ideas they bring. “Cirque du Soleil looks for the best performers it can find”， said publicist Steven Ross， “seek talents at circus shows， sports festivals， anywhere around the world.” Performers who are selected travel to the Cirque du Soleil headquarters in Montreal， where they learn their routines and are fitted for costumes. Once their acts have been approved as safe， they get the opportunity to go before a live audience.

Intensive training is used to develop their acrobatic skills， artistic performance， and most importantly， teamwork awareness and skills. Performers are required to practice a certain number of hours per week， both on and off the stage. Cirque du Soleil has more than 5，000 employees ranging from gymnasts and musicians to engineers and chefs. “You name it， we have it，” Ross said. “Anyone who would like to work for Cirque， theres going to be a position for them.” When asked what aspiring performers should do to prepare， Ross said： “Its really about following your passion and dreams， and then it can happen.”

Reading check

Write a summary for the text with about 60 words.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Language study

Difficult sentence

Performers who are selected travel to the Cirque du Soleil headquarters in Montreal， where they learn their routines and are fitted for costumes.

【翻譯】___________________________________________

【點石成金】本句中，有兩個定語從句。一個是who在從句中做主語，修飾先行詞performers;一個是where在從句中做地點狀語，修飾先行詞the Cirque du Soleil headquarters。