Carly Smithson might be the first American Idol contestant to be voted off the show for blasphemy.
Online chat boards devoted to American Idol have been abuzz since Smithson performed the title song from Jesus Christ Superstar, a 1970 rock opera which many Christians consider offensive. Smithson received the fewest votes of the six remaining contestants following her performance. Her elimination was announced late last month. The week’s performances were drawn from the works of Andrew Lloyd Webber, who wrote Jesus Christ Superstar with Tim Rice.
Since its debut, and particularly following the release of the 1973 film version, Jesus Christ Superstar has been railed against by some Christians. The opera portrays Jesus as confused and at times unwilling to accept his role and hints that he had a sexual relationship with Mary Magdalene.
PHOTO: AP
In the title song, Judas Iscariot rebukes Jesus for poor planning in his choice of when and where to present himself on earth and asks Jesus to contrast himself with Buddha and Mohammed.
Within hours of Smithson’s performance, which was hailed by one American Idol judge as one of the best of the night, questions were being raised online about the song. On one thread on the show’s official Web site, AmericanIdol.com, a viewer warned shortly after the performance that Smithson’s choice of the song would put her in danger of elimination.
Some contestants on American Idol have used the religious overtones of songs to their benefit. Several weeks ago Kristy Lee Cook, a country singer who had been on the verge of elimination, improved her standing with a performance of the song God Bless the USA.
Simon Cowell, one of the show’s judges, called the effort “the most clever song choice I have heard in years.”
(NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE)
卡莉．史蜜森可能成為首位在《美國偶像》比賽中，因選唱褻瀆上帝的歌曲而被觀眾票選出局的參賽者。
史蜜森演唱了令許多基督徒反感的一九七Ｏ年搖滾音樂劇「萬世巨星」的主打歌後，在《美國偶像》專屬線上聊天室中引發激烈討論；史蜜森的演唱在最後六強中得到最少票數，上個月底她已被該節目淘汰出局。該周比賽指定歌曲須從安德烈．韋伯的作品中挑選，而「萬世巨星」就是他和提姆．萊斯合寫的歌曲。
「萬世巨星」自發行以來就一直受到部分基督徒的譴責，尤其是在一九七三年電影版本現世後；該音樂劇中的耶穌不但在面對使命時感到困惑，有時甚至不願接受自己的角色，劇中還暗示他和抹大拉馬利亞有肉體關係。
在該音樂劇的主打歌中，猶大指責耶穌在不適當的時間、出現在不適當的地方，實在是有欠考慮，並要耶穌拿自己和佛祖及穆罕默德比較看看。
史蜜森的表演被《美國偶像》其中一位評審讚譽為當晚最佳表演之一，但之後幾個小時內，她的演唱就在網路上引起爭議；史蜜森演唱完後不久，該節目官方網站AmericanIdol.com上的一個討論串中就有人提到，史蜜森選唱這首歌可能會害她被淘汰出局。
《美國偶像》節目中有若干參賽者曾選唱帶有宗教色彩的歌曲來為自己加分；原本在淘汰邊緣的鄉村歌手克莉絲蒂．李．庫克數週前就是演唱了《天佑美國》才讓她的排名攀升。
該節目評審之一的賽門．柯威爾稱讚說，「這是我多年來聽到最聰明的選歌了。」
（紐約時報�翻譯：袁星塵）
allergic to 極度討厭 The phrase allergic to can be used informally to say that you detest something. For example, “I wouldn’t recommend Brett for the position. He’s allergic to hard work.” 「allergic to」這個片語是表示憎恨某事的非正式用法，例如：「我不建議讓布萊德擔任那個職務，他討厭繁重工作」。
The debate surrounding Taipower’s recent corporate identity reboot has gone well beyond the design community. The controversy began after Taipower replaced the familiar “Taiwan Power Company” wording — widely regarded as the calligraphy of Yu You-ren (1879-1964), former Control Yuan president and master calligrapher — with a modern logotype by designer Aaron Nieh’s team, Aaron Nieh Workshop. Taipower said the change was not a wholesale replacement of old signage, but an “optimization of its identity system,” aimed at meeting the needs of digital media, electronic bills, apps, social media graphics and various small-format applications. Existing physical markings, such as building
Since 2005, the third Monday in January has come to be known as “Blue Monday.” In other words, that day is believed to be the most depressing day of the year. This concept seems logical at first. After all, Monday marks the start of the school or workweek after two days of rest and fun. Also, blue is a color that is often associated with sadness. Furthermore, in many parts of the world, January is a time when the weather is cold, rainy, and gloomy. But is there any scientific proof that this January day is truly sadder than any of
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A: In early May, there were concerts by Icyball, Chyi Yu, Korea’s EXO and Japan’s Anisama, but I missed them all. What a shame. B: That’s OK. There are shows coming up by various artists, including Power Station, Accusefive, Japanese singer Mika Nakashima, Chinese-Icelandic jazzer Laufey, and even Singaporean diva Stefanie Sun. A: After a 12-year hiatus, Stefanie is finally returning to Taipei again. B: In late May, there will be more shows by Crowd Lu, WeiBird, Korea’s Donghae, 2AM, EXID, and Thailand’s BUS. A: The Thai boyband is so popular. It looks like “T-pop” is catching up with J-pop
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