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Customs and traditions of Russia

Many great holidays and anniversaries (годовщина) are celebrated in our country. On the 1st of May there is May Day — the holiday of spring and labour (труда) . On the 8th of March there is Women's Day — the holiday of all women and girls. We celebrate Day of Independence of Russia on the 12th June and Day of Russian Constitution on the 12th of December. Now people celebrate some religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter.

There are lots of New Year traditions in Russia. In every home there is a New Year tree glittering with coloured lights and decorations. Children always wait for Father Frost to come and give them a present. Many people consider (рассматривать) New Year's Day to be a family holiday. But the young prefer to have New Year parties of their own.

It is a really wonderful holiday. People get ready for this holiday long before it. They buy New Year trees and decorate them. Every year a fairy-tale (сказка) comes to every house and every family on New Year's Eve. Children and even grown-ups wait for this day because they believe that all their wishes and desires (мечта) come true and different wonderful miracles happen on that day.

On New Year' s Eve people get together to see “the old year out and the new year in”. People see the new year in at midnight on the 31st of December. They greet the new year with champagne and listen to the Kremlin chimes (колокола) beating 12 o'clock.

Then they eat tasty food, drink champagne, dance and have a good time together. They wish each other happiness and good luck in the new year and put the presents under the New Year tree. Children like this holiday very much. They wait for New Year presents, which, they believe, Father Frost bring to them. Everybody is merry on that day and wishes the next year to be good and happy and all one's troubles and disappointments to remain in the past.

A renewed (возобновленный) holiday in our country is Christmas. It is celebrated on the 7th of January. It's a religious holiday and a lot of people go to church services (церковная служба) on that day.

On the 8th of March we celebrate Women's Day when men are supposed (предполагается) to do everything about the house and cook all the meals.

The cinema and the theatre in usa

When New Yorkers go to the cinema, they expect to see a large program: a newsreel (кинохроника) (which is usually the first item (пункт) on the program), a cartoon (комикс), a documentary and a feature (полнометражный) film. Sometimes two feature films are included in the program. Foreign films are shown with subtitles or are dubbed.

The program may have one or two intervals during which refreshments (закуски) of all kinds are offered. In some American cinemas there is a continuous showing of the program from opening till closing time. In that case the exact time of the shows is not fixed and seats are not reserved. You may enter or leave the hall any time during the show and take any seat you like. Most New York's cinemas are situated on Broadway and in Times Square.

A great number of various films are released (выпускаются) in the USA every year. Hollywood-released films differ in genre as well as in artistic value. Hollywood's early films were westerns; horror films; comedies. Then there were romance films.

Musicals (which like westerns are a wholly American pro­duction) are still popular with the cinema-goers.

American films of today are science fiction (научно-фантастический) films, Gangster films, films based on novels and films which deal with his­torical events. Many of the films raise urgent (актуальные) problems facing contemporary (современный) society and give food for thought.

Most American films are made with great professional skill. Acting and photography are usually excellent. But there are also cheap second-rate films, which critics call stupid, badly written and badly directed.

With the popularity of television, the theatre lost a great deal of its attraction. Besides, theatre tickets are so expensive that the theatre is a luxury.

Not many theatres risk staging serious intellectual plays. Producers avoid them as unprofitable. They are sure that the public will not like them as one goes to the theatre to relax. They think that if people do not expect to be entertained and amused at the theatre, they would rather stay at home.

Most new plays are presented first on Broadway, which is the theatrical district (район) of New York. Plays shown at small theatres off Broadway, though modestly staged, equal (не уступающий) sometimes the best Broadway performances in professional skill.

If a play is a hit, it may have a long run, which is the case with a great num­ber of musicals.

The nation's leading opera and ballet companies are situated in New York in Lincoln Centre for the Performing Arts, which also houses a symphony orchestra, a theatre and a library muse­um. Touring (путешествующие) ballet companies also perform at Madison Square Garden (which is not a garden but a show place and a stadium ). Classical music can be heard at Carnegie Hall. Films coupled with a stage show may be seen at Radio City Music Hall, one of the world's largest theatres seating over six thousand people.