Circus Has Problems

B1 – Intermediate

Cirque du Soleil was founded in 1984 and it has become very famous all over the world since then. They’ve had very successful shows in many different countries. 

However, due to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the company had faced a lot of money problems.

Read the transcript and listen to the audio from the link below.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/circus-has-problems-level-1/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What comes to your mind when you hear ‘circus’?
  2. Have you ever seen any Cirque du Soleil performances? Talk about it.
  3. Now that they might never see them perform again, would you have liked to watch their show or would you like to get the chance to see their show again?
  4. What was your reaction to this news?
  5. Do you think there is still a possibility for this circus group to have shows again in the future? Why or why not?
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12 replies on “Circus Has Problems”

-What comes to your mind when you hear ‘circus’?
* It comes to my mind people flying and doing the most amazing things I could imaging.
-Have you ever seen any Cirque du Soleil performances? Talk about it.
* Yes, I saw a performance 3 years ago, It was incredible. It Was my first experience and I loved it.
-Now that they might never see them perform again, would you have liked to watch their show or would you like to get the chance to see their show again?
* Of course I would like to see them again. They are now acting in my city.
-What was your reaction to this news?
* I didn’t know about this. But I thing is a old news.
-Do you think there is still a possibility for this circus group to have shows again in the future? Why or why not?
*Yes, They are actually acting again

Good work with your writing practice!

Here is how to revise this sentence:

Yes, They are actually acting again

Yes. In fact, they are actually performing again.

Until your next posts!

1. I think about my childhood especially at Christmas period. During the Christmas Holidays I went to the circus with my family (my parents, my brother and my sister).
2. I have seen the Cirque du Soleil performances but in the TV or in a documentary. I have never been to the Cirque du Soleil but I have friends that they saw the spectacle and they commented me that it is spectacular.
3. Yes, I would like to watch the show.
4. My reaction is sad. This kind of shows were greatly affected by Covid. They lost a lot of money.
5. Yes, of course. I think there is a possibility for this circus group to have shows again in the future. The people know their shows and know that their shows are incredible. They are very successful in Spain. Maybe the problem is that sometimes the price is vey high.

Good job answering your writing exercise.

Here is a sentence you can revise:

I have seen the Cirque du Soleil performances but in the TV or in a documentary.

I have seen the Cirque du Soleil performances, but only on in the TV or in a documentary.

Nice work!

1. For some reason I think of animals and clowns, but I prefer human-only circuses.

2. Yes, once I remember that the choreography and acrobatics seemed very complex to me

3.I think that they are already presenting themselves again, many people were affected by the covid, like the bars, but little by little they have been returning to normal

4. It is sad on the one hand to hear that so many people were fired, it is a large company and they should be able to access government aid to keep as many employees as possible since there are not many circuses as prestigious as that

5.it is true that we thought that life stopped completely with covid but it seems to me that we are better now and everything is returning to normal

Good that you continue to practice your skills by doing this writing exercise.

Here is a better way to write this response:

I think that they are already presenting themselves again, many people were affected by the covid, like the bars, but little by little they have been returning to normal

I think that they are already performing again. Many businesses like bars, restaurants, theaters, etc. have been affected by the Covid pandemic, but they have been returning to normal little by little.

Just keep working on improving your skills by writing more and more.

What comes to your mind when you hear ‘circus’? A show that takes place under a tent with clowns, elephants and tigers
Have you ever seen any Cirque du Soleil performance? Just some youtube videos, and the truth is that it looks spectacular. It must be a joy.
Now that they might never see them perform again, would you have liked to watch their show or would you like to get the chance to see their show again? Of course, now I have time to save money 🙂
What was your reaction to this news? It’s not a surprise because of the situation caused by the coronavirus
Do you think there is still a possibility for this circus group to have shows again in the future? Sure. If they were successful in the past, they will be successful in the future

Thanks for posting your replies to our questions. Great work! However, feel free to write longer responses as well.

Here is how to improve this sentence:

If they were successful in the past, they will be successful in the future

If they were successful in the past, they’d still be successful in the future.

Here’s to your next entries!

What comes to your mind when you hear ‘circus’?
I see a typical tent with a stage where clowns try to make laugh the people, acrobats that made a difficult exercises, a pretty girl on top of a trapeze, elephants, ponys and monkeys…

Have you ever seen any Cirque du Soleil performance? Talk about it.
Once a time. I recognize the work of many acrobats, his presentations and the costumes, but everything was very loaded, redundant and repetitive.
In an other time, at a medical metting I saw a small performance that I like more.

Now that they might never see them perform again, would you have liked to watch their show or would you like to get the chance to see their show again?
I do not know. It’s possible

What was your reaction to this news?
I’m feel sad. Because I understand that it was a good company for people that like this kind work

Do you think there is still a possibility for this circus group to have shows again in the future? Why or why not?
I think so!
And I think this experience can change the management of the company and avoid the current situation

It is one sad news for sure. Thank you for letting us know your thoughts on this topic.

Please take a look at some of these minor changes you can make on these sentences in order to improve them:

where clowns try to make laugh the people
where clowns try to make people laugh

Once a time.
Once or one time.

I’m feel sad.
I feel sad.

You are doing a good job so far.

I ussually think on animals and clowns when I hear the word “Circus”.

I have seen two Cirque du Soleil performances, I enjoyed too much when I saw the first one, it was called “Harmony”, it was so beautiful and aesthetic that it makes me feel as an spiritual experience. But, the second one was an absolut disappointment, it was like a school show, it was so boring that I saw my watch each minute eager for that terrible show arrive to end. I have never returned to see any other Circus du Soleil show.

I don´t think they never perform again, their show is unique in the world.

It was surprising for me, especially to know they had laied off too many people, it is really a shame.

I think they have been so successful that when the vaccine is ready, they will be able to perform again. Their business is a gold mine.

You are fortunate to have seen them perform before this happened. Cheers!

Please study carefully how you can structure this part of your response better:

I have seen two Cirque du Soleil performances, I enjoyed too much when I saw the first one, it was called “Harmony”, it was so beautiful and aesthetic that it makes me feel as an spiritual experience. 

I have seen two Cirque du Soleil performances. I enjoyed both shows a lot / too much. The first one I saw was called “Harmony”. It was so beautiful and aesthetically-pleasing that it made me feel as if it were a spiritual experience.

Continue practicing your writing skills. You are doing good so far.

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