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Kander and Ebb Quizzes, Trivia and Puzzles
Kander and Ebb Quizzes, Trivia

Kander and Ebb Trivia

Kander and Ebb Trivia Quizzes

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John Kander and Fred Ebb collaborated to bring us the music for "Cabaret" and "Chicago", not to mention writing the song that became one of Frank Sinatra's signatures, "New York, New York".
3 quizzes and 40 trivia questions.
1.
  Kander & Ebb    
Multiple Choice
 20 Qns
This is a quiz about the musical theatre songwriting team of Kander and Ebb. Enjoy!
Tough, 20 Qns, Mrs_Seizmagraff, Aug 25 08
Tough
Mrs_Seizmagraff
280 plays
2.
  Kander & Ebb & Liza    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
John Kander and Fred Ebb have written music for many artists, but their association with Liza Minnelli is legendary. About half of this quiz will focus on the composers' work with Liza; the rest will consist of other, hopefully interesting, questions.
Tough, 10 Qns, cmstrong, Jan 07 11
Tough
cmstrong
203 plays
3.
  Kander and Ebb    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
How well do you know the work of Kander and Ebb? Easy quiz to test you!
Tough, 10 Qns, ozchicago, Aug 31 08
Tough
ozchicago
253 plays
trivia question Quick Question
When did the Roundabout Theatre Company's production of Sam Mendes's revival of 'Cabaret' open on Broadway?

From Quiz "The Sam Mendes Revival of 'Cabaret'"




Related Topics
  Cabaret [Humanities] (6 quizzes)

  Chicago [Humanities] (3 quizzes)


Kander and Ebb Trivia Questions
1. Who wrote the book to "Steel Pier"?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: David Thompson

"Most people associate dance marathons and the Great Depression with people being desperate for money and nobody having a good time, but in 1933 Atlantic City was also a magical place where all the big bands came to play. Fred Ebb remembers being taken there as a child and how elegant it was." ~David Thompson

2. One of John Kander's first professional jobs in New York City was with the 1959 musical "Gypsy". What was his role?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Dance music arranger

"Gypsy" has music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. John Kander arranged the dance music.

3. What was John Kander's involvement in the original production of "Gypsy"?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Dance Arrangements and Rehearsal Pianist

This was John Kander's first official job on Broadway.

4. Which Kander-Ebb song was included in the movie "Cabaret" but not in the stage version?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb & Liza

Answer: Maybe This Time

Kander and Ebb's "Maybe This Time" was included on another one of Liza's pre-"Cabaret" solo albums. When Liza won the role of Sally Bowles in "Cabaret" she and John and Fred persuaded Bob Fosse to include it; the song was NOT a part of the original Broadway "Cabaret" score. "Money, Money" and "Mein Herr", also both written for the movie, have since become a staple part of stage productions.

5. Who writes the music?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: John Kander

Kander and Ebb Musicals include: "Flora the Red Menace" (1965) "Cabaret" (1966) "The Happy Time" (1968) "Zorba" (1968) "70 Girls 70" (1971) "Chicago" (1972) "The Act" (1978) "Woman of the Year" (1981) "The Rink" (1984) "And The World Goes 'Round" (1991) "Kiss of the Spider Woman" (1992) "Steel Pier" (1997) "Fosse" (1999) "The Skin Of Our Teeth" (1999) "The Visit" (2001).

6. What was Kander and Ebb's first Broadway show?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Flora, the Red Menace

"Flora" starred a then unknown Liza Minnelli, and began Kander and Ebb's long relationship with her. George Abbot (the show's director) initially did not want Minnelli, but when the girl he had cast as Flora dropped out, Kander and Ebb (and producer Hal Prince) got their way and cast Minnelli. The show was a flop, but earned Liza her first Tony.

7. Who co-produced the television special "Liza with a Z"?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb & Liza

Answer: Fred Ebb only

Fred Ebb was always a little bit more of a friend and mentor to Liza than John Kander and this, his first producing effort, was "a labor of love." Ebb also produced "Goldie and Liza Together" and "Baryshnikov on Broadway."

8. The musical "Chicago" is based on a play by whom?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Maurine Dallas Watkins

The story is actually based on real events, which were fashioned into a play, then a non musical movie, then a musical.

9. Fill in the lyric from the opening song of "Zorba": "Life is what you do while you're waiting to ______."

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: die

"Zorba" was first on Broadway in 1968, and revived in 1983 starring Anthony Quinn. This was the first Kander/Ebb show Chita Rivera did, she starred in the 1968 touring version.

10. Several references cite "New York, New York" as Kander and Ebb's 'most famous' song. Where did Liza NOT perform this famous song?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb & Liza

Answer: at the 1994 running of the Belmont Stakes

Wikipedia cites two of these -- the one during the July 4, 1986 ceremony marking the rededication of the Statue of Liberty after extensive renovations, and in the middle of the seventh inning of a New York Mets game that was the first pro sports event in the metro area after the September 11, 2001 attacks as two of the "most memorable" live performances ever. The "Larry King Live" show with Liza and David Guest aired May 23, 2002 -- maybe not so memorable. "New York, New York" *has* been performed at the Belmont Stakes but never by Liza.

11. Who were the original leads in "The Rink", in the London production?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Josephine Blake and Diane Langton

Chita Rivera and Liza Minelli origanted the roles on Broadway, and when it moved to London a completely new cast was found.

12. What song from "Cabaret" did a prominent Jewish leader urge Kander and Ebb to cut, claiming that it was an actual NAZI anthem?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Tomorrow Belongs to Me

Kander's eerie refrain certainly evokes NAZI imagery (as it was intended), however it was all his own composition. The leader was insistent that the song was an actual NAZI propaganda song. "Tomorrow belongs to me" remained in, however a line in the song "If you could see her" was changed to bow to pressure from Jewish groups. This line was reinstated to the original in the 1987 and 1998 revivals.

13. Which Kander and Ebb role did Brent Carver create on Broadway?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Molina ("Kiss of the Spider Woman")

Brent Craver won the Tony for his performance, and also created the role of Leo Frank in Jason Robert Brown's "Parade".

14. John Kander got his start as a pianist for which notable comic actress/singer?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb & Liza

Answer: Beatrice Lillie

According to John's Kennedy Center biography: "John Kander began his career in 1956 as the pianist for "The Amazing Adele" during its pre-Broadway run and for "An Evening with Beatrice Lillie" in Florida."

15. In Walter Boobie's revival of "Chicago" how many actors are on the jury in the courtroom scene?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: One

The one actor plays all twelve jurors, changing roles and costumes as the show continues.

16. What year was a "Happy Time" for Kander and Ebb on Broadway?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: 1968

"The Happy Time", a forgettable musical set in Quebec, played Broadway in 1968, the same year as "Zorba". It starred Robert Goulet.

17. Kristin Chenoweth made her Broadway debut in which show?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Steel Pier

Kristen originated the role of Precious Mcguire in Kander and Ebb's "Steel Pier", winning a Theatreworld award for her performance.

18. What was the first musical that Kander and Ebb collaborated on for Broadway?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Flora, The Red Menace

"Flora the Red Menace" opened May 11, 1965, and ran for just 87 regular performances.

19. Who starred as Billy Flynn in the original 1975 production of "Chicago"?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Jerry Orbach

Jerry was great in the role. He went on to star in the long running musical "42nd Street" which premiered in 1980, and of course TV's "Law and Order".

20. When Gwen Verdon became ill during the original run of "Chicago", who stepped in to fill her place?

From Quiz Kander and Ebb

Answer: Liza Minnelli

Gwen Verdon contracted a throat infection from swallowing a feather off one of her costumes, that lodged in her throat and became infected. Liza Minnelli stepped in with only five days' rehearsals, and insisted that there be no advertising to sell her performances.

21. Another "Chicago" question: What is "understandable", according to Mary Sunshine and Billy Flynn?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Roxie's defence

The bridge in "We both reached for the gun" (which goes "understandable, understandable...") is the ONLY piece of music in the entire show in the meter 3/4.

22. What was Lauren Bacall in 1981?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Woman of the Year

"Woman of the Year" is absolutely hilarious! Bacall does an excellent job as Tess Harding, and won her second Tony for this role. "Coco" is a forgettable 1970s musical, "Madwoman..." was Phyllis Newman's 1980s one-woman show (Kander and Ebb contributed a song to that one) and "Chief Cook..." is a song from "The Rink".

23. Who is the voice of the animated cat on the recording of Kander and Ebb's 1981 musical?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Fred Ebb

Ebb is the voice you will hear on the recording of "Woman of the Year". Another example where the lyricist makes a cameo on the recording is in the original recording of "Gypsy" in which we hear Sondheim bellow, "You ain't getting 88 cents from me, Rose!"

24. In 1991 the revue "And the World Goes 'Round" debuted off-Broadway, introducing us to many previously unheard Kander and Ebb songs, including one about this fictional food character:

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Sara Lee

Wouldn't a song about Aunt Jemima be a blast? I love "Sara Lee", it's a great song. "And the World Goes 'Round" starred Karen Ziemba, who would later appear in 1997's "Steel Pier".

25. "Kiss of the Spider Woman" was tried out extensively before finally landing on Broadway in 1993. Name ONE of the two cities it tried out pre-Broadway:

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: London & Toronto

Chita Rivera, then in her 60s, never missed a performance of "Kiss of the Spider Woman" except for a six-month break in 1995 when Vanessa Williams took over the role. One journalist described her as "putting the 'sex' back in 'sexagenarian'".

26. "Life's a party, why don't you come to the Steel Pier?" 1997 was the last time Broadway saw a new Kander and Ebb musical, "Steel Pier". The opening number, quoted above, was compared by critics to which other Kander and Ebb song?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Cabaret

"Life is a cabaret, old chum! Come to the Cabaret." The score of "Steel Pier" sounds tired, despite a few gems like "Everybody's Girl". Steel Pier lasted less than 80 performances.

27. In 1999, Kander and Ebb's new musical "Over and Over" premiered at the Signature Theatre in Washington, DC. What play was the basis for this musical?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: The Skin of our Teeth

"Over and Over" never made it to Broadway and to date I don't think there are any plans for a recording. It starred the late great Dorothy Louden as the stage manager.

28. In 2001, "The Visit" premiered at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, starring the immortal Chita Rivera. Chita was not the original leading lady that Kander and Ebb had in mind, however. Who was she?

From Quiz Kander & Ebb

Answer: Angela Lansbury

Angela attended several workshops of "The Visit" but had to bow out due to her husband's illness. It would have been incredible to see her work with Kander and Ebb, as she has worked with some of the great musical theatre talents of this era; Jerry Herman ("Mame", "Dear World") and Stephen Sondheim ("Sweeney Todd"). "The Visit" was supposed to be on Broadway in 2004, but was cancelled late 2003 when a backer pulled out.

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