Breakdown of Dijous el teló s'obrirà a les vuit, i divendres hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra.
Questions & Answers about Dijous el teló s'obrirà a les vuit, i divendres hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra.
Why does the sentence start with Dijous and divendres with no preposition, instead of something like el dijous or en dijous?
In Catalan, days of the week can be used without a preposition to mean on Thursday / on Friday in many contexts, especially in schedules, announcements, and narrative style.
So:
- Dijous = on Thursday / Thursday
- divendres = on Friday / Friday
You may also see:
- el dijous = on Thursday or Thursdays, depending on context
- els dijous = on Thursdays / every Thursday
In this sentence, Dijous ... i divendres ... sounds natural and concise, like a program note or event announcement.
What exactly is el teló?
El teló means the curtain, especially the theater stage curtain.
So in this context, it is not just any fabric curtain in a house, but specifically the curtain in a performance venue.
Related words:
- teatre = theater
- escenari = stage
- teló = stage curtain
Why is it s'obrirà and not just obrirà?
S'obrirà comes from obrir-se, literally to open itself, and here it is used in a way that corresponds to English will open.
So:
- obrir = to open something
- obrir-se = to open
Examples:
- Obriran la porta. = They will open the door.
- La porta s'obrirà. = The door will open.
In your sentence:
- el teló s'obrirà = the curtain will open
This is very natural in Catalan for things that open, close, break, move, etc.
What does the apostrophe in s'obrirà mean?
The s' is the clitic pronoun es, shortened before a vowel.
So:
- es obrirà becomes s'obrirà
Catalan often shortens pronouns this way:
- se + obre → s'obre
- es + aixeca → s'aixeca
It is just the normal written contraction before a vowel sound.
Why is it a les vuit?
Catalan uses a before clock times:
- a la una = at one
- a les dues = at two
- a les vuit = at eight
So:
- el teló s'obrirà a les vuit = the curtain will open at eight
Notice:
- la una is singular
- most other hours use les
What does hi mean in hi tornarà?
Here hi means there.
So:
- tornar-hi = to return there / to go back there
In the sentence:
- divendres hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra = on Friday the same orchestra will return there
The there refers to the place already understood from context, probably the theater or venue.
Catalan often uses hi where English might use:
- there
- to it
- in it
- at that place
Why is hi necessary? Could you just say divendres tornarà la mateixa orquestra?
Yes, you could say divendres tornarà la mateixa orquestra, but it would usually mean simply the same orchestra will return / come back on Friday, without explicitly marking the place.
Adding hi makes the destination or location clear:
- tornar = return, come back
- tornar-hi = return there
So hi adds the idea of back to that place.
Why is the subject after the verb in hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra?
Catalan often allows the subject to come after the verb, especially in announcements, narrative, and when introducing or highlighting the action first.
So both are possible in many contexts:
- La mateixa orquestra hi tornarà divendres.
- Divendres hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra.
The version in your sentence sounds quite natural and stylistically smooth, especially in program-like language. It puts focus first on:
- the day
- the action of returning
- who returns
What does la mateixa orquestra mean exactly?
La mateixa orquestra means the same orchestra.
The adjective mateix / mateixa / mateixos / mateixes means same.
Agreement:
- el mateix concert = the same concert
- la mateixa orquestra = the same orchestra
- els mateixos músics = the same musicians
- les mateixes obres = the same works/pieces
So mateixa is feminine singular because orquestra is feminine singular.
Why is it mateixa and not igual?
Catalan usually uses mateix for the same, while igual more often means equal, identical, or similar/same in quality depending on context.
So:
- la mateixa orquestra = the same orchestra (the very same one)
- una orquestra igual = a similar / identical orchestra, not necessarily the exact same one
For identity, mateix is the normal choice here.
What tense is obrirà and tornarà?
They are in the simple future.
Forms:
- obrirà = will open
- tornarà = will return
Infinitives:
- obrir
- tornar
The ending -à here is the third person singular future:
- jo obriré
- tu obriràs
ell/ella obrirà
- jo tornaré
- tu tornaràs
- ell/ella tornarà
So:
- el teló s'obrirà = the curtain will open
- la mateixa orquestra hi tornarà = the same orchestra will return there
Why is there an i before divendres?
I means and.
It links the two parts of the sentence:
- Dijous el teló s'obrirà a les vuit
- i divendres hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra
So the sentence is simply coordinating two events:
- what happens Thursday
- what happens Friday
Is there anything special about the punctuation or style of the whole sentence?
Yes. The sentence has a slightly formal, program-like style, the kind you might see in:
- a theater brochure
- an event schedule
- a cultural announcement
- a newspaper listing
Features that create that effect:
- starting with the day name: Dijous, divendres
- concise future forms: s'obrirà, tornarà
- use of hi to avoid repeating the venue
- postverbal subject: hi tornarà la mateixa orquestra
So although the grammar is normal, the sentence sounds polished and idiomatic rather than conversationally casual.
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