ACT Reading Practice Test 4

Question 1

Cities across the world are essentially blends of smaller cultural environments that lead people to have vastly different experiences.
Each city typically contains a broad spectrum of dining establishments along with various art institutions like museums and theatres.
Yet with all these blends of dining, art and night lives, what is the one characteristic that can distinguish a city? History.
The undeniably unique history of each city provides rich traditions and a bond between the local people that overshadows any other city’s mélange of dining and art institutions.
In context, which word most closely defines mélange?

Accepted Answer

assortment

Answer

frivolous

Answer

tradition

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opportunity

Answer

brochure

Question 2

Cities across the world are essentially blends of smaller cultural environments that lead people to have vastly different experiences.
Each city typically contains a broad spectrum of dining establishments along with various art institutions like museums and theatres.
Yet with all these blends of dining, art and night lives, what is the one characteristic that can distinguish a city? History.
The undeniably unique history of each city provides rich traditions and a bond between the local people that overshadows any other city’s mélange of dining and art institutions.
In context, which word most closely defines mélange?

Accepted Answer

Ruins from the Berlin Wall and the local community

Answer

The exquisite French restaurant in the European district

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The Museum of Natural History

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Wrigley Field

Answer

A democratic government

Question 3

Passage 1          Because it is filled with contradictions, performance is     also filled with risk. This is the domain of stage fright. The     actor is aware that appearing in front of an audience is a  Line  scary proposition. Maintaining the reality of the character is,  5  in itself, a fragile affair; it demands of the actor a series of     complex transformations. The actor has the unique problem     of hiding and showing at the same time. The actor’s conscious     fear is not about making a mistake, but about allowing the     audience to see something that it is not supposed to see:  10  namely, the performer’s fear, or stage fright.    Passage 2          The term “stage fright” has largely dropped out of use,     because we know now that dwelling on something this     malevolent gives it power. If I tell you not to be afraid,     you may dwell on your fear. If I say, do not think of  15  fast-food burgers under any circumstances, a line of     them will parade through your mind. The key to most     fears is substitution. On the simplest level, you replace     the ogre with something less menacing to fill your     consciousness. If you will imagine yourself to be a  20  host rather than an actor, and think more about the     comfort of your listeners than their verdicts, everything     will fall into place.  What is the best way to describe the purposes of the two passages?

Accepted Answer

Passage 1 analyzes a phenomenon; Passage 2 suggests a solution to a problem.

Answer

Passage 1 traces the consequences of an incident; Passage 2 narrates a process.

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Passage 1 interprets a series of examples; Passage 2 gives a typical case.

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Both passages present well-known examples to challenge a misconception.

Answer

Both passages explain a pattern by questioning previous theories.

Question 4

Passage 1          Because it is filled with contradictions, performance is     also filled with risk. This is the domain of stage fright. The     actor is aware that appearing in front of an audience is a  Line  scary proposition. Maintaining the reality of the character is,  5  in itself, a fragile affair; it demands of the actor a series of     complex transformations. The actor has the unique problem     of hiding and showing at the same time. The actor’s conscious     fear is not about making a mistake, but about allowing the     audience to see something that it is not supposed to see:  10  namely, the performer’s fear, or stage fright.    Passage 2          The term “stage fright” has largely dropped out of use,     because we know now that dwelling on something this     malevolent gives it power. If I tell you not to be afraid,     you may dwell on your fear. If I say, do not think of  15  fast-food burgers under any circumstances, a line of     them will parade through your mind. The key to most     fears is substitution. On the simplest level, you replace     the ogre with something less menacing to fill your     consciousness. If you will imagine yourself to be a  20  host rather than an actor, and think more about the     comfort of your listeners than their verdicts, everything     will fall into place.  In the context of Passage 1, the phrase "Maintaining the reality of the character" (line 4) most directly refers to

Accepted Answer

presenting to the audience only behavior relevant to the character

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believing oneself to be the character

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playing the character in a way that resembles real life

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showing the audience how the character sees a situation

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keeping the character from becoming purely imaginative

Question 5

Passage 1          Because it is filled with contradictions, performance is     also filled with risk. This is the domain of stage fright. The     actor is aware that appearing in front of an audience is a  Line  scary proposition. Maintaining the reality of the character is,  5  in itself, a fragile affair; it demands of the actor a series of     complex transformations. The actor has the unique problem     of hiding and showing at the same time. The actor’s conscious     fear is not about making a mistake, but about allowing the     audience to see something that it is not supposed to see:  10  namely, the performer’s fear, or stage fright.    Passage 2          The term “stage fright” has largely dropped out of use,     because we know now that dwelling on something this     malevolent gives it power. If I tell you not to be afraid,     you may dwell on your fear. If I say, do not think of  15  fast-food burgers under any circumstances, a line of     them will parade through your mind. The key to most     fears is substitution. On the simplest level, you replace     the ogre with something less menacing to fill your     consciousness. If you will imagine yourself to be a  20  host rather than an actor, and think more about the     comfort of your listeners than their verdicts, everything     will fall into place.  How do the passages view stage fright in relation to human behavior in general?

Accepted Answer

Passage 1 emphasizes that situations unique to the theater cause stage fright, whereas Passage 2 views stage fright as similar in one way to most other

Answer

Passage 1 attributes stage fright to an individual's personal problems, whereas Passage 2 believes stage fright is caused by social problems.

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Passage 1 sees stage fright as normal and healthy, while Passage 2 sees stage fright as an extreme reaction.

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Both passages view stage fright as a phenomenon that people experience in everyday life.

Answer

Both passages view stage fright as part of a phase actors go through in their lives.

Question 6

Passage 1          Because it is filled with contradictions, performance is     also filled with risk. This is the domain of stage fright. The     actor is aware that appearing in front of an audience is a  Line  scary proposition. Maintaining the reality of the character is,  5  in itself, a fragile affair; it demands of the actor a series of     complex transformations. The actor has the unique problem     of hiding and showing at the same time. The actor’s conscious     fear is not about making a mistake, but about allowing the     audience to see something that it is not supposed to see:  10  namely, the performer’s fear, or stage fright.    Passage 2          The term “stage fright” has largely dropped out of use,     because we know now that dwelling on something this     malevolent gives it power. If I tell you not to be afraid,     you may dwell on your fear. If I say, do not think of  15  fast-food burgers under any circumstances, a line of     them will parade through your mind. The key to most     fears is substitution. On the simplest level, you replace     the ogre with something less menacing to fill your     consciousness. If you will imagine yourself to be a  20  host rather than an actor, and think more about the     comfort of your listeners than their verdicts, everything     will fall into place.  Which of the following describes an actor coping with stage fright by following the advice of the author of Passage 2?

Accepted Answer

A performer who thinks of the audience as friends

Answer

A performer who tries to impress the audience

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A performer who follows the same rituals before every performance

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A performer who blocks out thoughts of the audience

Answer

A performer who tries to keep the audience amused