For upper beginners to intermediates. Listen to the short podcast and then answer the comprehension questions below.
娘のミュージカル
My Daughter’s Musical
In this episode, Yumi shares how her 17-year-old daughter’s first-ever audition turned into a summer of rehearsals, 9 performances, and a big success on stage. 🎭🇯🇵 #LearnJapanese #Podcast #JapaneseCulture
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- 新学期 — "New school term/semester." 新 means "new," and 学期 means "school term" or "semester."
- 2週目位 — "Around the second week." 週 means "week," 目 is an ordinal marker ("the second week"), and 位 means "approximately." Put together, it means "about the second week."
- 夏休みの間中夢中 — "Absorbed the whole summer vacation." 夏休み means "summer vacation," 間中 means "throughout; the whole time," and 夢中 means "absorbed; obsessed; completely into something."
- 神話 — "Myth; mythology." 神 means "god," and 話 means "story" or "tale."
- ティーン向け — "For teenagers; aimed at teens." ティーン (from English "teenager") and 向け ("intended for; geared toward"). Used for products, media, or content aimed at a teenage audience.
- 劇場 — "Theater." 劇 means "drama; play," and 場 means "place." Together, "place for drama" → theater.
- 端役 — "Minor role; small part (in a play)." 端 means "edge" or "side," and 役 means "role."
- チョイ役 — "Bit part; cameo role." チョイ is a colloquial shortening of ちょっと ("a little"), and 役 means "role." Literally "a little role."
- 出演 — "Appearance; performance." 出 means "to go out/appear," and 演 means "performance." Together, "to appear on stage, in a show, or on screen."
- 主役 — "Leading role; main character." 主 means "main" or "primary," and 役 means "role."
- 代役 — "Substitute role; understudy." 代 means "replacement/substitute," and 役 means "role." Refers to someone who steps in to play a part instead of the original actor.
- 持ち上がった — "Came up; arose." From the verb 持ち上がる (to be raised; to arise). The past tense form 持ち上がった means "came up" or "was brought up." Often used for topics, issues, or proposals that suddenly appear.
- 挑戦 — "Challenge; attempt." 挑 means "to challenge," and 戦 means "battle." Together, "to challenge oneself" or "to try." Can be used as a noun or as a verb with する (挑戦する = "to challenge/attempt").
- 公演 — "Performance (stage)." 公 means "public," and 演 means "performance." Refers specifically to a theatrical performance, musical, or play presented to an audience.
- 初舞台大成功 — "Debut stage, great success." 初 means "first," 舞台 means "stage," 大 means "big," and 成功 means "success." Together, "a debut stage performance that was a big success."
- 滞りなく — "Smoothly; without delay." 滞り means "hindrance; delay; stagnation," and なく is the negative form ("without"). Expression meaning "without problems; smoothly."
- 本格的 — "Authentic; full-scale; serious." 本格 means "real thing; authentic style," and 的 turns it into an adjective. Refers to something being genuine, professional, or proper.
- 一応 — "For the time being; sort of; just in case." Used to soften statements, meaning "tentatively," "to some extent," or "for the record." Can imply something is not perfect but sufficient.
- 非常 — "Extreme; very; extraordinary." 非 means "non-/not," and 常 means "usual." Literally "not usual" → "extraordinary; unusual; very." Often used in 非常に ("extremely; very").
- 女優さん — "Actress." 女 means "woman," 優 means "performer/actor." さん is the polite suffix. Refers to a female actor.
- 素人さん — "Amateur; non-professional." 素 means "plain; unrefined," and 人 means "person." Together, "amateur" or "non-professional." さん adds politeness.
- 抜擢された — "Was selected; was chosen (for a special role)." 抜擢 means "selection for a prominent position, often unexpectedly." された is the passive form of する, so 抜擢された = "was selected/appointed."
Can you answer these questions?
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