Gateway B1+. Unit 1.Test. Reading

Read the article about actors and their work. The headings have been removed from the article. Choose from the headings A–F the one which fits each gap.

A Not a job for me!

B Living the role

C Physical changes

D Identity changes

E What makes the best actors

F The crazy world of actors

1 ………………………                            [Not a job for me!, Living the role, Physical changes, Identity changes, What makes the best actors, The crazy world of actors]

Actors have lives which sometimes seem completely mad to the rest of us. Sometimes glamorous, sometimes chaotic but usually a little bit mad!

2                            [Not a job for me!, Living the role, Physical changes, Identity changes, What makes the best actors, The crazy world of actors] ………………………

Imagine having a job where you have to take on a new identity every week or month! That’s what actors do. For every play or film, they have to become a different person, often with a different personality and different appearance. One

week they’re kind, generous and blonde, and the next week, they’re tall, thin and arrogant! This chameleon existence must create a stressful life for actors. Or does it?

3 ………………………                            [Not a job for me!, Living the role, Physical changes, Identity changes, What makes the best actors, The crazy world of actors]

Actors think about acting their new characters in different ways. Some, like Daniel Day-Lewis or Kate Winslet, use a technique called method acting to ‘live’ the role. They learn everything they can about the new person they are going to become. Then they do everything their character would do. They dress the same, they eat the same things, they talk in the same way and even try to walk like them. The idea is to start ‘thinking’ like the new character. And they don’t behave like this only in the studio or on stage, but they take the character home as well! That must be difficult for the rest of the family! Who’s going to be at breakfast with us today – Mad Max, Macbeth or the President of the USA?

4 ………………………                            [Not a job for me!, Living the role, Physical changes, Identity changes, What makes the best actors, The crazy world of actors]

Other actors create their characters in different ways. Some say that changing their appearance helps them to become the new person. Costume and make-up are very important, but some actors do even more to change their appearance. Some actors eat more and work out at the gym to put on weight for some parts – like Chris Hemsworth in the Thor films – and then diet to get thin again for the next film! Some grow their hair long or even go bald! Some really good actors can make us believe that they’re taller or stronger than they really are just by the way they act. Others need a bit of help – like Tom Cruise in his high shoes, or Robert Redford, who sometimes had to stand on a box because he’s quite short!

5 ………………………                            [Not a job for me!, Living the role, Physical changes, Identity changes, What makes the best actors, The crazy world of actors]

The best actors are the ones who don’t take their own personality with them into the role. They take on the new identity completely and we don’t think of the actor when we see them, but of the character. Heath Ledger, who died in 2008,

was like this. He could change so completely that people don’t immediately think ‘Oh, that’s Heath Ledger’! He could be handsome, ugly, blonde or dark. He could be clever, stupid, funny or serious. He was a master at changing identity.

6 ………………………                            [Not a job for me!, Living the role, Physical changes, Identity changes, What makes the best actors, The crazy world of actors]

Actors have a difficult job and I admire them a lot. Personally, I think it’s quite enough to have just one identity!

Is this statement True (T) or False (F)?

Kate Winslet and Daniel Day-Lewis go and live with the people they want to become

on screen.

Is this statement True (T) or False (F)?

The writer thinks that an actor’s life can be stressful for the actor’s family at times