Photos courtesy of AP and EPA
The Sydney Opera House celebrated its 40th birthday anniversary on October 20 with a flotilla of lifesavers, aboriginal dancers and a huge cupcake.
Read the following story to learn more about this big event.
The Sydney Opera House, widely known as a masterpiece of human creativity, was packed with tens of thousands of people who came to mark its 40th birthday anniversary.
Danish architect Jorn Utzon’s family were the guests of honour. It was a postcard-perfect day beneath the same cloudless skies that inspired Jorn’s winning design to build Sydney an opera house back in 1956.
“A building like this happens once in a lifetime,” Jorn’s son Jan told revellers on October 20. “It is a unique Australian expression of will and enthusiasm.”
UNIQUE CEREMONY
A crew of surf lifesavers wearing their famous red and yellow caps and costumes arrived at the Opera House’s Man O’ Warsteps on one of Sydney’s distinctive ferries, flanked by six of the association’s dinghies and two tugboats.
They were met and led up the red-carpeted steps by Aboriginal dancers. A traditional smoking ceremony was then held to spiritually cleanse the site, accompanied by an indigenous dance ritual and didgeridoo performance.
PARTY TIME
A giant cupcake topped with a model of the Opera House made from icing was also carried onto the stage. Australian rocker Jimmy Barnes — singer of popular band Cold Chisel — led a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday accompanied by a navy brass band and school choir.
ICONIC CONCERT HALL
The distinctive performance hall is one of Australia’s best-known landmarks and a centre piece of Sydney’s cultural scene, hosting some 2,000 shows every year and attracting millions of visitors annually.
“As the most internationally recognisable symbol of both Sydney and Australia, it has become our calling card to the world,” New South Wales Governor Marie Bashir said.
Opera House chief Louise Herron said the huge crowds were a reminder that the Opera House is the people’s palace.
Exercises
Read the story. Then, specify whether each of the following words in the story is used as a noun, adverb or adjective.
1. internationally …………………………..
2. distinctive …………………………..
3. chief …………………………..
4. reminder …………………………..
Vocabulary
- flotilla (n): a group of boats or small ships sailing together
dinghy (n): a small open boat that you sail or row
tugboat (n): a small powerful boat used for pulling ships, especially into a harbour or up a river
indigenous (adj): belonging to a particular place rather than coming to it from somewhere else
didgeridoo (n): an Australian musical instrument consisting of a long wooden tube which you blow through to produce a variety of deep sounds
