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Obscure Drama Trivia Quiz

Warning: this isn't your usual theatre quiz. These are mostly plays that you've probably never heard of unless you're a real hard-core theatre junkie, so good luck. P.S.-I've worked on or seen all of these shows, so I know they exist!

A multiple-choice quiz by GypsyQueen. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
GypsyQueen

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
46,550

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
15

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
9 / 15

Plays
3357

Last 3 plays: Guest 73 (4/15), Brooklyn1447 (5/15), Guest 51 (8/15).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 15

1. In Eric Bogosian's 'subUrbia', what is the nationality of Norman, the man who runs the 7-11? Hint

Greek

Indian

Pakistani

Polish

NEXT>

Question 2 of 15

2. In Jeff Wanshel's 'Isadora Duncan Sleeps with the Russian Navy', what does Isadora do for a living? Hint

She's a singer

She's a prostitute

She's a dancer

She's a beggar

NEXT>

Question 3 of 15

3. Sam Shepard's 'Fool for Love' (not really an unknown show) features the squabbling thirty-somethings Eddie and May. What is their relationship? Hint

Siblings and lovers

Father and estranged daughter

A married couple

A divorced couple

NEXT>

Question 4 of 15

4. In Gilbert and Sullivan's 'The Mikado', what is the name of Nanki-Poo's young lover? Hint

Pitti-Sing

Katisha

Peep-Bo

Yum-Yum

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Question 5 of 15

5. Shakespeare's 'Measure for Measure' deals with deception, among other things. Who disguises himself or herself as a monk? Hint

The Duke of Vienna

Mistress Overdone, a bawd

Angelo, a justice of the peace

Lucio, a gossip

NEXT>

Question 6 of 15

6. Eve Ensler's 'The Vagina Monologues' is a celebration of females everywhere. At one point in the show, the women in the cast talk about menstruation. Are any of them pleased with it?

Yes

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Question 7 of 15

7. In Sam Shepard's 'Icarus' Mother', five people are waiting to see the fireworks, but one of them wants to leave and take a walk. Who is it? Hint

Jill

Pat

Frank

Bill

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Question 8 of 15

8. Sam Hazo Sr. wrote a play that consisted entirely of monologues written about people he knew. What was this play called? Hint

'A Night of Monologues'

'Forgotten Voices'

'Solos'

'Separate Destinies'

9. Written by Jason Robert Brown, of 'Parade' fame, this musical revue is a beautiful collection of songs that deal with everything from lost love, to unplanned pregnancy, to a very bitter Mrs. Santa Claus! Hint

'Songs for a New World'

'Into the Fire'

'Solos'

'Songs of Change'

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Question 10 of 15

10. This Gershwin musical contained a song that inspired the film 'Funny Face', starring Audrey Hepburn. Hint

'My One and Only'

'Crazy for You'

'Porgy and Bess'

'Guys and Dolls'

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Question 11 of 15

11. Ayn Rand's 'The Night of January 16th' is a courtroom drama, where a woman named Karen Andre is on trial for her employer's murder. What was the dead man's name? Hint

William Faulkner

Bjorn Faulkner

Bill Fallswell

Bobby Simon

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Question 12 of 15

12. This play by John Patrick features an older woman about to be committed to an asylum because she won't give her children her late husband's money! Hint

'Teahouse of the August Moon'

'Anybody Out There'

'The Curious Savage'

'A Bad Year for Tomatoes'

NEXT>

Question 13 of 15

13. A.R. Gurney is famous for having written a number of plays. Which of the following did he pen? Hint

'Picnic'

'The Dining Room'

'Bus Stop'

'Come Back, Little Sheba'

NEXT>

Question 14 of 15

14. Barry Keating's kitchy and fun musical sci-fi adventure features intergalactic superheroes and a simple earth girl who must save the universe. What's this corny, cute, crazy show called? Hint

'Return to Forbidden Planet'

'Starmen'

'The Day the Earth Almost Stood Still'

'Starmites'

NEXT>

Question 15 of 15

15. If this is a tough one, I'm sorry...who wrote the show 'Speed-the-Plow'?

Answer: (He also wrote the screenplay for 'State and Main'.)

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Most Recent Scores

Mar 28 2024 : Guest 73: 4/15
Mar 21 2024 : Brooklyn1447: 5/15
Mar 18 2024 : Guest 51: 8/15
Mar 17 2024 : Dreessen: 8/15
Mar 07 2024 : Cymruambyth: 4/15
Mar 01 2024 : Guest 92: 7/15
Feb 28 2024 : Guest 24: 9/15

Score Distribution

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In Eric Bogosian's 'subUrbia', what is the nationality of Norman, the man who runs the 7-11?

Answer: Pakistani

NORMAN. My name is Nazeer Chaudhry. Norman is...just a name. JEFF. Nazeer! What's that, Indian? NORMAN. Pakistani. Karachi is in Pakistan.

2. In Jeff Wanshel's 'Isadora Duncan Sleeps with the Russian Navy', what does Isadora do for a living?

Answer: She's a dancer

ISADORA DUNCAN. Mr. Daly, allow me to introduce myself--I am the spiritual heir to Walt Whitman. By the Pacific Ocean, by the waving pine forests of the Sierra Nevada, in Yosemite Valley and the great Rocky Mountains, I have discovered an art lost for two thousand years--the art of the dance. I see America dancing! Permit me to illustrate.

3. Sam Shepard's 'Fool for Love' (not really an unknown show) features the squabbling thirty-somethings Eddie and May. What is their relationship?

Answer: Siblings and lovers

EDDIE. She just appears. She's just standing there, staring at me and I'm staring back at her and we can't take our eyes off each other. It was like we knew each other from somewhere but we couldn't place where. But the second we saw each other, that very second, we knew we'd never stop being in love.

4. In Gilbert and Sullivan's 'The Mikado', what is the name of Nanki-Poo's young lover?

Answer: Yum-Yum

NANKI-POO. And I have journeyed for a month, or nearly, To learn that Yum-Yum, whom I love so dearly, This day to Koko is to be united!

5. Shakespeare's 'Measure for Measure' deals with deception, among other things. Who disguises himself or herself as a monk?

Answer: The Duke of Vienna

DUKE. Therefore, indeed, my father, I have on Angelo imposed the office, Who may in th' ambush of my name strike home, And yet my nature never in the fight To do in slander. And to behold his sway, I will, as 'twere a brother of your order, Visit both prince and people. Therefore I prithee Supply me with the habit, and instruct me How may I formally in person bear Like a true friar.

6. Eve Ensler's 'The Vagina Monologues' is a celebration of females everywhere. At one point in the show, the women in the cast talk about menstruation. Are any of them pleased with it?

Answer: Yes

WOMAN 3. Twelve years old. I was happy. My friend had a Ouija Board, asked when we were going to get our periods, looked down and I saw blood.

7. In Sam Shepard's 'Icarus' Mother', five people are waiting to see the fireworks, but one of them wants to leave and take a walk. Who is it?

Answer: Pat

JILL. We're all going to see the fireworks together. So there's no point in getting everyone all excited. Pat's going to see them with us and nobody's going to walk anywhere.

8. Sam Hazo Sr. wrote a play that consisted entirely of monologues written about people he knew. What was this play called?

Answer: 'Solos'

ESTHER: The one thing about being left on your own is that you get good at it whether you want to or not. You don't have a choice. You cope. You get strong. You even start to get proud of yourself. Of course, you'd still like to have him at home, but you can't deny you like it solo now and then.

Answer: 'Songs for a New World'

WOMAN 1: It's about one moment That moment you think you know where you stand And in that one moment The things that you're sure of slip from your hand And you've got one second To try to be clear, to try to stand tall But nothing's the same And the wind starts to blow And you're suddenly a stranger In some completely different land And you thought you knew But you didn't have a clue That the surface sometimes cracks To reveal the tracks To a new world...

10. This Gershwin musical contained a song that inspired the film 'Funny Face', starring Audrey Hepburn.

Answer: 'My One and Only'

MICKEY. I love your funny face!

11. Ayn Rand's 'The Night of January 16th' is a courtroom drama, where a woman named Karen Andre is on trial for her employer's murder. What was the dead man's name?

Answer: Bjorn Faulkner

No quotes for this one. I lost the script. The production I was in was hardly something I am proud of, I hate to admit! Perhaps I'm still bitter over being cast as the mute stenographer...?

12. This play by John Patrick features an older woman about to be committed to an asylum because she won't give her children her late husband's money!

Answer: 'The Curious Savage'

Again, no direct quotes, but at least my role in this one was {better;} I played Florence, the inmate who was convinced that a baby doll was her real son, John Thomas. This was certainly a fun part to play!

13. A.R. Gurney is famous for having written a number of plays. Which of the following did he pen?

Answer: 'The Dining Room'

No quotes...gee, I gotta stop losing my scripts! Actually, William Inge wrote all of the other plays. 'The Dining Room' is a cleverly-written piece that features, yes, a dining room, and the affairs, problems, dinners, and LIFE that occurred in and around it over the course of about a century. It's pretty fun!

14. Barry Keating's kitchy and fun musical sci-fi adventure features intergalactic superheroes and a simple earth girl who must save the universe. What's this corny, cute, crazy show called?

Answer: 'Starmites'

STARTMITES. We're the Starmites, the mighty Starmites...!

15. If this is a tough one, I'm sorry...who wrote the show 'Speed-the-Plow'?

Answer: Mamet

Yes, this is a Mamet show, famous for its explosive usage of the F-word! I ran crew for this one in college, a few years ago. And my name was even spelled right in the program!

Source: Author GypsyQueen

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor LeoDaVinci before going online.
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