6．
From March 29to April 19，a new version of Death of a Salesman
was performedat tne Capital Theatre as the first in a series （系列） offoreign classics to mark the 60th anniversary of the Beijing People's Art
Theatre．The last time this play was performed in Beijing was 29years ago．
Death of a Salesman was created in 1949by Arthur Miller，who used it to reveal （揭示） the weakness of the"American Dream"．The main character，Willy Loman，believes wholeheartedly in American capitalism，and desires to"succeed"but his own greed consumes him in the end．Death of a Salesman's first performance was a huge hit on Broadway，where it shocked the American theatre world，and strengthened the 33-year-old Miller's status as a master of American theatre．The play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama，New York Drama Critics'Circle，and the Tony Award for Best Play．The New York Times praised Death of a Salesman as a milestone of 20th century theatre．In 1999，Death of a Salesman received another Tony Award for Best Revival，and the then 83-year-old Miller was given the National Medal of Arts．
The 1983version of Death of a Salesman was directed personally by Arthur Miller on a visit to China，with Beijing director and actor Ying Ruocheng as the main character of Willy Loman．On May 7，1983，the play was performed for the first time at the Capital Theatre，and the first series of performances lasted until August 18，with over 50performances，some of which filled the house，and all of which had great influence．
When it was first performed here，China didn't have"salesman"，so the actors had to use their imagination to represent the characters and American society，and the audiences weren't entirely sure about some information．For example，they couldn't understand what"fixed payments"were，or why，if Willy was a lower-class member of American society，his family had a house，car，refrigerator，and television．But this didn't stop the play from becoming a widely-known page in Beijing's theatre history．
56．What would be the best title for the passage？A
A．Death of a Salesman Returns to Beijing
B．Arthur Miller-a master of American theatre
C．Willy Loman-winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama
D．Death of a Salesman-a milestone of 20th century theatre
57．Which of the following is true according to the passage？A
A．The play received the Tony Award twice．
B．Arthur Miller became famous in his forties．
C．China didn't have"salesman"until the play was first performed here．
D．The 1983version of Death of a Salesman was directed by Ying Ruocheng．
58．The underlined word"consumes"in Paragraph 2probably meansB．
A．benefits B．destroys C．encourages D．purchases
59．We may know from the last paragraph thatD．
A．the play was not well received at first because it was from America
B．most Chinese couldn't understand the play because of the language
C．the Chinese actors did not perform well enough to attract the audiences
D．the audiences could still appreciate the play regardless of cultural differences．
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