A Song and a Prayer Trivia Quiz

Answer: Gethsemane (I Only Want to Say)

"Jesus Christ Superstar" with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice was originally distributed as a concept album before it was first staged on Broadway in 1971. Even though depicting the story of Jesus Christ following the general account given in the New Testament, the musical also adds some new viewpoints through an intended anachronistic perspective, mostly personified in the character of Judas.

In "Gethsemane (I Only Want to Say)" Jesus verbalizes his fears and doubts whether the path intended for him is the right way. He wrestles with himself and God's will as presented to him until he finally reaches the conclusion "Take me now! Before I change my mind!"

Answer: Mary Hayley Bell

While the original novel is set in Lancashire, England, Webber chose to transfer the plot to Louisiana. Since it tells the story of a a bunch of children mistaking an escaped convict who is hiding in their barn for Jesus Christ, the influences of the Bible Belt seemed more appropriate as background of the story. The above-mentioned song, sung during a local church meeting, establishes the nature of life in this little village steeped in religion, before the overture already.

A concept album of "Whistle Down the Wind" (with lyrics by Jim Steinman) was released in 1998 (after an unsuccessful stage production in Washington, DC in 1996), with major pop and musical Stars, like Tom Jones, Bonnie Tyler, Meat Loaf, Boy George or Michael Ball introducing the songs. From this album, the song "No Matter What" interpreted by Boyzone became a number one chart hit in several countries, including the United Kingdom. A reworked and more successful version of the stage show premiered in 1998 in London's West End.

Answer: Richard Rodgers

The story of "Floyd Collins", which opened in Off-Broadway's Playwrights Horizons theater in 1996, was drawn from a real-life event. On January 30, 1925, Floyd Collins went on to explore the great Sand Cave near Cave City, Kentucky. While he was trying to squeeze through a tight opening, his foot got trapped between a small rock and the ceiling. A huge media circus was conducted with reporters camping outside writing about the newest developments of the rescue mission. After 17 days they were finally able to pave their way through to him, only to find Floyd Collins had died three days earlier already.

Musically "Floyd Collins" is a very intricate piece which combines different musical styles from bluegrass to Americana to structures taken from classical music. The poetic and haunting "How Glory Goes" allows the show to end on a more positive note and was recorded by various musical performers including Audra McDonald who named one of her solo albums after the song.

Answer: Carrie

Before a Broadway transfer later in the year, "Carrie" (Music: Michael Gore; Lyrics: Dean Pitchford) was first produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon in February 1988. Even though numerous technical and script problems were more than obvious already, the show nevertheless opened on Broadway in April and became what by some is considered the most notorious Broadway flop in history. Ken Mandelbaum even wrote a book focusing on the history of Broadway musical bombs titled "Not Since Carrie", hinting at the legendary status this show still holds among musical theater aficionados.

Including a lot of indescribably camp and cheesy material, "Carrie", based on Stephen King's novel of the same name, still could offer some songs, mostly the duets between Carrie and her mother (like above-mentioned "Evening Prayers"), that showed depth and character development. A rewritten version of the show, which cut some of the more questionable material from the earlier incarnation (like the song "Out for Blood" which details the slaughtering of the pig right before prom night) and added a few new songs, opened Off-Broadway in 2012 to largely favorable reviews.

In "Evening Prayers" (Off-Broadway version), Carrie is locked inside a closet wondering where this strange (telekinetic) feeling comes from that she has been experiencing lately, while Margaret outside prays to God for forgiveness. A little figurine of Jesus strangely levitates in front of Carrie and falls back into her hands when her mother unlocks the door and sends her to bed, apologizing for her deeds and assuring her daughter that she loves her unconditionally.

Answer: Aida

"Aida" (Music: Elton John; Lyrics: Tim Rice) opened on Broadway in 2000 and ran for nearly 1,900 performances, also winning four Tony Awards, including Best Score and Best Leading Actress in a Musical. In the quoted song, "The Gods Love Nubia", Aida summons her fellow Nubians, all enslaved by the Egyptians, after her father Amonasro, the king of Nubia, had also been captured by them. In this powerful gospel song, she assures her people that even though they had been ripped off their land and power, Nubia lives on no matter where, because "the spirit always burning, though the flesh is torn apart."

While the Elton John musical only adapted the story of Verdi's opera (with an added framework plot set in a museum in the present) and offers a completely new score, "My Darlin' Aida" (Book and Lyrics: Charles Friedman, 1952) rewrote the story, but retained Verdi's music. It transferred the plot from ancient Egypt to a plantation in Tennessee during the Civil War where Aida lives as a slave and her father comes from the North to lead a slave uprising.

Answer: Ragtime

Written in a very unique style, the novel "Ragtime" describes the life of a number of equally important characters, whereas its musical adaptation (Music: Stephen Flaherty; Lyrics: Lynn Ahrens, 1996/1998) focuses mostly on the storyline surrounding the African-American ragtime pianist Coalhouse Walker, Jr. and his fight for justice. After his Ford Model T was destroyed by a group of racist firemen, he - trying to get restored what is rightfully his - stakes his claim with various governmental departments, but to no avail. When his girlfriend Sarah gets beaten to death, he goes on a rampage, blowing up firehouses and killing people, but at the same time acquires a group of followers who see just like he does that the country has to change its attitude in regard to race relations.

"Till We Reach That Day" as gospel addressing a higher being is not only the expression of grief because of a lost life, but also the manifestation of the African-American people's situation in the USA at that time (the early 20th century) and their anticipation of change, of a "new day" that will dawn.

Answer: Masada

"Imagine This" with music by Shuki Levi and lyrics by David Goldsmith opened in London in 2008, but closed after only a very short run. Most audiences as well as critics had a certain discomfort with the subject as such, feeling that a horrible event like the Holocaust is inappropriate for musical theater, a genre which is generally considered to be more lighthearted.

The plot focuses on the performance of "Masada", the play with in a play, which draws heavy parallels to the story's present and the fates of the Jews during the Holocaust. The above-quoted prayer followed by a reprise of the song "Masada" is sung at the end of the play within a play and manifests the choice to die in freedom rather than to live as slaves.

Despite the unlikely setting and tragic story, "Imagine This" contains a number of haunting melodies, including the title song and "Masada".

Answer: Charles Strouse

"Rags", with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, tells the story of a handful of Jewish immigrants in early 20th century New York City and the hardships they have to overcome in the New World. The plot relies heavily on the real circumstances of Jewish life at that time in the USA, like the fire in the sweatshop of the garment industry in which Bella, a young woman and friend of the show's protagonist Rebecca, is killed. The real-life event referenced here, the fire in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in 1911, to this day is considered as one of the deadliest industrial accidents in the city's history.

Despite some beautiful and effective songs, like "Children of the Wind", "Rags" or "Blame it on the Summer Night", the show mostly suffered from a not-too-well-written book. According to Ken Mandelbaum's "Not Since Carrie", "[Joseph] Stein's book was a muddle, with too many characters and subplots that couldn't be fully developed."

Answer: ABBA

"Kristina fran Duvemala", or "Kristina" in its English version, is a Swedish musical adapted from a series of four novels by Vilhelm Moberg with music by Benny Andersson and (Swedish) lyrics by Björn Ulvaeus of ABBA fame. Despite being better known as pop music writers, the score of "Kristina" has an intricate operatic quality and epic proportions and requires very well trained singers.

The plot depicts the poor life in rural Sweden in the 19th century and eventually the emigration to the USA, where the purported better life turns out to have been just an illusion with the problems in the New World equally as devastating as those in the old home. This is when the heavily religious Kristina looks to heaven for guidance with the powerful "You Have to Be There" ("Du maste finnas") in which she not only struggles with her fate but also with her faith.

"Kristina fran Duvemala" opened in Sweden in 1995 and was a tremendous success, an English version with the title "Kristina" was presented in concert at the Carnegie Hall in 2009 and the Royal Albert Hall in 2010.

Answer: Marius

"Les Misérables" (Music: Claude-Michel Schönberg; French lyrics and book: Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel; English adaptation: Herbert Kretzmer) was first released in French as a concept album and then produced at the Palais de sports in Paris in 1980 before it was rewritten and adapted for English audiences. It opened in London in 1985 to negative reviews, yet it became one of the longest-running musicals in history.

The quoted song "Bring Him Home" was not part of the original French concept version, though; it was specifically written for Colm Wilkinson when he was cast as Valjean in London. Wilkinson, born 1944 and therefore too old to portray Valjean, still appeared in the 2012 movie version of the musical, this time playing the kind Bishop who guides Valjean on his path to a new life.