Shakepeare clichés

As you might know, Shakespeare was very creative in his use of English, and more than a thousand expressions in present-day English are attributed to him and his plays or poetry. So much so that it has inspired comedians to play with the idea. As you can hear in the video, they have the audience "in stitches" about it ;) 

The Language of Espionage

“We’re investing in foreign-language excellence as a core attribute for our officers. We’re strengthening our language training to ensure that our people are more capable and better attuned to the cultures in which they operate.”
~ CIA Director Gina Haspel

Remember how we talked in class about benefits of learning languages? This did not come up, but espionage certainly looks like an exciting job opportunity! ;) I know, it's probably not at the top of your list right now, but who knows? Perhaps you could be another James Bond or... the first JENNY Bond? :D

Many people believe that Google Translator will soon eliminate or at least minimize the need for foreign language learning. This may be true in the case of such activities as tourist travel or shopping, but high level business contacts and international politics will never be possible without competent multinguals. It's not just knowing vocabulary and grammar that counts; it's about bridging cultural differences and finding common ground. It's about understanding one another, not just communicating. So, do not waste this opportunity of improving your English, but try to get the most out of it. Give your English a BIG boost while you can!

The 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination

On April 4th, 1968 at 7:05 p.m. central time, Dr. King’s life was cut tragically short. 50 years later a need for his dream to be fulfilled is far greater than ever.

Share your dream & post your own #DreamStillLives video. Spread love...spread hope. pic.twitter.com/51BaCW78GC

— Stevie Wonder (@StevieWonder) 5 kwietnia 2018

National Theatre Live - the best of London theatre at your local cinema

I would like to encourage everyone to go and see a theatre production in a cinema. This is part of a worldwide project, National Theatre Live, which makes it possible to see the best English theatre without travelling to London and paying HUGE money for tickets there. These broadcasts are either live or encores, but you can really feel as if you were there, in the audience, except that you would never be able to afford tickets that would allow you to see the stage so up close. If you worry about understanding everything - don't! There are Polish subtitles for each production, though I would strongly advise you not to follow them and focus on the play itself. There is something to see once or twice a month, but don't count on things being repeated. Very few of them are - mostly Benedict Cumberbatch's Hamlet, because there seems to be endless demand for that ;) There are three venues in Poznań where you can see these shows, so you need to check what is shown where and when. These are: Kino Pałacowe, Multikino Stary Browar and Multikino 51. The best place to check for more information is nazywowkinach.pl - a website of  the company which distributes these productions across Central Europe. They also show plays from la Comédie-Française, the Metropolitan Opera, Bolshoi Ballet and the Exhibition on Screen series, which shows art exhibitions from top European museums and art galleries in HD quality. So, if you want to participate in European culture, now you have no excuse! The tickets are slightly more expensive than standard cinema tickets, but I'm sure it's money well spent. Here is a link to their Facebook page, where you can get updates on the nearest events. See you there!  

'I felt like I was a part of the audience in the theatre'... #HamletBarbican pic.twitter.com/HviaDMEGKe

— NT Live (@NTLive) 1 marca 2018

A short farewell message to my 3BA and 2MA students

You may have seen a lot of David Tennant in my classes, and here is another opportunity. David has a positive message to all of us, though it's not without some reservations. So, take care, and don't just trust your luck. It needs some help from YOU!