Упражнения уровня IELTS по английскому языку. № 38.

A Julie Prior is taking prom night very seriously.

B The Prom is, in a sense, the equivalent of a junior wedding day.

C On prom night, hundreds of customers are turned away.

D While many adults do not take the prom experience seriously, teenagers often do.

E No longer held in the high school gym, today's proms have gone upmarket.

F Should they drive or travel in style?

PROM NIGHT NERVES
Spring is the time of year that American teenagers start thinking of formal dances, graduations, graduation parties, and, if they are seniors, the most exciting event of all: the school prom. While it is a special time for teenagers, it is also a time filled with high expectations and a lot of peer pressure. Only the most popular couple get nominated Prom King and Queen.

(1) D For many kids the prom is more than just silly photographs and fancy clothes - the prom is a mythic part of youth culture and, for better or worse, will always be a night to remember.

(2) E These days proms take place at luxury hotels, complete with full banquet facilities and professional entertainment. Students arrive in hired limousines, dance the night away in rented formal clothes and then leave for a weekend of activities. With the rising purchasing power of youth culture, the prom is now an industry that supports its own magazines, films, clothing, accessories and services.

(3) A 'I've toured the stores, read the magazines, and visited all the prom dress sites.' She's even searched for prom dresses at eBay, the online auction site. Despite all the money being spent on it, the prom remains steeped in tradition and tough choices. According to custom, a boy should ask a girl to be his date. Boys have to choose who to invite and girls whether to accept. The happy couple then has to decide either to go to the prom alone or with a group of friends.

(4) F A six-passenger limousine will probably set you back about $50 per hour, while a fourteen-passenger stretch Lincoln goes for nearer $100 per hour. Plus, there is usually a minimum six-hour hire period. Prom night can be one of the most memorable events in teenager's high school years.

(5) B Like getting married, the prom is a ritual of great symbolic importance. High levels of expectations can cause anxiety and, for some, hopes for the evening are so high that they find the night a big disappointment.