Passage OneQuestions 21 to 25 are based on the following passage:

Acting¹ is such an over-crowded profession that the only advice that should be given to a young  of going on the stage is “Don’t !”. But it is useless to try to discourage someone who feels that he must act, though the chances of his becoming famous are slim. The normal way to begin is to go to a drama school. Usually only students who show promise and talent are accepted, and the course lasts two years. Then the young actor or actress takes up work with a repertory company, usually as an assistant stage manager. This means doing everything that there is to do in the theatre: painting scenery, looking after the furniture, taking care of the costumes, and even acting in very small parts. It is very hard work indeed. The hours are long and the salary is tiny. But young actors with the stage in their blood are happy, waiting for the chances of working with a better company, or perhaps in films or television.

Of course, some people have unusual chances which lead to fame and success without this long and dull training. Connie Pratt, for example, was just an ordinary girl working in a bicycle factory. A film producer happened to catch sight of her one morning waiting at a bus stop, as he drove past in his big car. He told the driver to stop, and he got out to speak to the girl. He asked her if she would like to go to the film studio to do a test, and at first she thought he was joking. Then she got angry and said she would call the police. It took the producer twenty minutes to tell Connie that he was serious. Then an appointment was made for her to go to the studio the next day. The test was successful. They gave her some necessary lessons and within a few weeks she was playing the leading part opposite one of the most famous actors of the day. Of course, she was given a more dramatic² name, which is now world-famous. But chances like this happen once in a blue moon!

21.According to the passage, the main reason why young people should  from becoming actors is____.
A） actors are very unusual people
B） the course at the drama school lasts two years
C） acting is really a hard job
D） there are already too many actors

22.An assistant stage manager’s job is difficult because he has to ____.
A） do all kinds of stage work
B） work for long hours
C） wait for a better company
D） act well

23.According to the context³, the sentence “But young actors with the stage in their blood are happy, ” at the end of the first paragraph means____.
A） they don’t care if their job is hard
B） they like the stage naturally
C） they are born happy
D） they are easily satisfied

24.Conie Pratt soon became a famous actress by____.
A） learning⁴ some lessons about the art of speaking
B） once playing her part in the “Blue Colored Moon”
C） successfully matching the most famous actors
D）acting a leading part with a most famous actor at that time

25.The phrase “once in a blue moon” in last line refers to ____.
A) all at onceB) once for a long time
C) once in a whileD) once and for all

内容概要:本文讨论的是从影当演员的问题。一般来说，从影当演员要经过较长时间的严格训练。虽然是这是个艰难的职业，但人们还是趋之若骛，因为当演员能出名。也有人偶然闯入影坛一夜成名的，本文的Connie Pratt就是这样一个典型。

21．【答案】D。【译文】根据本文，人们劝阻年青人不要作演员的主要原因是演员已经太多了。【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】短文第一句话就谈到了这一点：Acting is such an over-crowded profession that the only advice that should be given to a young  of going on the stage is “Don’t!”这里的一个关键词组是an over-crowded profession （拥挤不堪的职业），即从事当演员这个职业的人太多了。

22．【答案】A。【译文】助理舞台经理的工作很难，因为他得做各种各样的舞台工作。【试题分析】细节推理题。
【详细解答】短文第一段中间说得非常具体、详细，而题目是用概括性的语言来表达这一点：Then the young actor or actress takes up work with a repertory company, usually as an assistant stage manager. This means doing everything that there is to do in the theatre: painting scenery, looking after the furniture, taking care of the costumes, and even acting in very small parts.

23．【答案】B。【译文】根据本文，第一段最后一句话“But young actors with the stage in their blood are happy,…”的意思是他们天生喜欢舞台。
【试题分析】语义理解题。【详细解答】第一段主要谈论的是要想做演员出名是如何地难，可尽管如此，那些血液里都有舞台的年青演员还是感到很高兴，这里 with the stage in their blood是一种形象说法，相当于汉语的说法：骨子里都有舞台，即他们天生喜欢演戏、当演员。

24．【答案】D。【译文】和当时的一位非常有名的男演员演对手戏，担任主角，Connie Pratt很快成了名演员。【试题分析】细节推理题。【详细解答】本文最后一段讲的是Connie Pratt偶然成为名演员而没有付出艰苦的努力这样一个特例：They gave her some necessary lessons and within a few weeks she was playing the leading part opposite one of the most famous actors of the day. Of course, she was given a more dramatic name, which is now world-famous.

25．【答案】B。【译文】最后一行的段语“once in a blue moon” (千载难逢地) 指“once for a long time”(很长时间才有一次)。【试题分析】语义理解题。【详细解答】本题考的是习语。习语“once in a blue moon”的意思是“千载难逢地”，与“once for a long time”基本同义。在阅读理解中做语义题一定要结合习语所在的句子以及短文的上下文。本文最后一段讲的是Connie Pratt这样一个特例，像她这样成功的情况是极少的，即像这样的机会是千载难逢的。只要准确地理解了上下文，这样的语义题是不难做的。all at once指“突然，忽然”；once in a while指“偶尔，不时地”；once and for all指“永久地，一劳永逸地”。