I Will Sing You that Song Now, Comrades Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. 'Hakuna Matata': "I'm a sensitive soul though I seem thick-skinned; And it hurt that my friends never stood downwind"

Answer: Warthog

The stage musical adaptation of 'The Lion King' is based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name and shares much of the same music, including various songs written by Elton John and Tim Rice. One of these is the popular 'Hakuna Matata' in which a meerkat named Timon and a warthog called Pumbaa share their approach to life with Simba the lion cub. The lines given in the question were sung by Pumbaa as he lamented the negative impact of his tendency to pass wind on his social relationships.

'The Lion King' premiered on Broadway in 1997 and the West End in 1999 and has since gone on to become one of the longest-running shows in both locations. It won the Tony Award for Best Musical in 1998.

2. 'Alone in the Universe': "I've been guarding this clover for over a week; Getting laughed at for thinking a dust speck can speak."

Answer: Elephant

'Seussical' - a musical by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens based on the works of the children's author Dr Seuss - had a largely unsuccessful debut on Broadway in 2000 and first appeared in the West End in 2012. The plot largely follows the story of 'Horton Hears a Who!' and Horton the Elephant is one of the two characters that sing the song 'Alone in the Universe' (the other being a boy named Jojo).

The lyrics given in the question are the opening lines of the song and refer to Horton's discovery and protection of the miniature world inhabited by the Whos.

3. 'Hello Little Girl': "Look at that flesh; Pink and plump; Hello, little girl..."

Answer: Wolf

'Into the Woods' is a Stephen Sondheim musical featuring characters from a variety of different fairy tales. It premiered on Broadway in 1987, had its West End debut in 1990 and was made into a feature film starring Meryl Streep in 2014. The main characters introduced in the musical's prologue are Cinderella; Jack (of Beanstalk fame); a childless baker and his wife with a family connection to Rapunzel, and Little Red Riding Hood. 'Hello, Little Girl' is the second musical number of the production and is sung by Little Red Riding Hood and the wolf that wants to have her and her grandmother for dinner. Needless to say, the lines given in the question are from the wolf's part.

4. 'Don't Let Me Go': "Hey, hey, hey! You gotta let me go with you!; You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak!"

Answer: Donkey

'Shrek the Musical' is based on the popular 2001 movie 'Shrek' by DreamWorks Animation and opened on Broadway in 2008. It tells the story of the titular ogre who is sent on a mission to rescue the beautiful Princess Fiona from the evil Lord Farquaad, only to fall in love with her and discover that she is an ogress. Soon after Shrek sets off he rescues a bubbly and garrulous donkey (who was voiced by Eddie Murphy in the film version) from Lord Farquaad's guards.

The song 'Don't Let Me Go' sets out Donkey's plea to Shrek to be allowed to stay with him and join him on his adventure.

5. 'You'll Be In My Heart': "For one so small, you seem so strong; My arms will hold you; Keep you safe and warm"

Answer: Gorilla

The song 'You'll Be In My Heart' was written by Phil Collins for the 1999 Disney film 'Tarzan'. Collins' performance of the song from the official movie soundtrack was a chart success, making it to number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100. In 2006, the film was adapted into a Broadway stage musical; in that production 'You'll Be In My Heart' was largely performed by Kala, the female gorilla who adopted the orphaned Tarzan after losing her own son.

The selected lyrics from the song provide a bit of a clue to the type of animal chosen to sing it - after all, not many animals have arms!

6. 'Under the Sea': "Under the sea; Under the sea; Darling it's better; Down where it's wetter"

Answer: Crab

The Broadway musical 'The Little Mermaid' is another example of a Disney animated film being adapted for the stage. 'Under the Sea' was written for the film by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman and won an Academy Award for Best Original Song. It is sung in a calypso-style by Sebastian the Crab - a servant of the titular mermaid's father, King Triton. In it Sebastian implores Ariel (the mermaid in question) to stay in her watery home rather than swim off to become human in order to marry a human prince.

'The Little Mermaid' had 685 performances on Broadway between January 2008 and August 2009.

7. 'Supper Time': "My stomach clock just went off. It's suppertime and Charlie Brown forgot to feed me."

Answer: Dog

Technically the lyrics in the question, which come from the first lines of the introduction to 'Supper Time' from 'You're a Good Man Charlie Brown', were spoken rather than sung. Regardless of that point though, they are uttered by the character Snoopy, the beagle who belongs to the musical's titular character. The song 'Supper Time' appears towards the end of the musical's second act and is largely about Snoopy demanding his supper.

The comedic musical is based on the characters from the comic strip 'Peanuts' by Charles Schulz, with music and lyrics by Clark Gesner. It debuted in 1967, moved to London's West End in 1968 and had its Broadway premiere in 1971.

8. 'If I Only Had the Nerve': "Yeh, it's sad, believe me, Missy; When you're born to be a sissy"

Answer: Lion

There have been many musical theatre adaptations of the 1939 film 'The Wizard of Oz' (and the 1900 book by L. Frank Baum on which it was originally based), including one by Andrew Lloyd Webber that premiered in London's West End in 2011. 'If I Only Had the Nerve', performed by the Cowardly Lion, is one of three variants of the same song composed by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg - the others being the Scarecrow's 'If I Only Had a Brain' and the Tin Man's 'If I Only Had a Heart'.

9. 'The Apple Tree (Forbidden Fruit)': "Just an apple a day; Wait and see; Come with me; To that tree!"

Answer: Snake

Both the original Broadway production of 'The Apple Tree' (which ran from 1966 to 1967) and the 2006 Broadway revival received nominations for Tony Awards for Best Musical. The musical is actually a set of three separate shorter pieces that are loosely connected by the common theme of reality not living up to expectations. The song 'The Apple Tree (Forbidden Fruit)' is from the first act, which is based on Mark Twain's story 'The Diaries of Adam and Eve'. It has only three characters - Adam, Eve and a snake - and the song in question is about the snake's temptation of Eve with the titular forbidden fruit. Later songs cover the somewhat disastrous results of Eve's impromptu meal.

The second and third acts of 'The Apple Tree' are based on the short stories 'The Lady, or the Tiger' by Frank R. Stockton and 'Passionella' by Jules Feiffer respectively.

10. 'Memory': "I can dream of the old days; I was beautiful then; I remember the time I knew what happiness was; Let the memory live again"

Answer: Cat

Grizabella is the specific cat from 'Cats' that performed these lines from the famous song 'Memory' (and all of the other lines too). Although she is known as "the Glamour Cat', Grizabella is elderly and has a dishevelled appearance that belies the nickname that she gained in her younger years. 'Memory' contains Grizabella's reflections on her past life as well as a plea to be readmitted to the Jellicle tribe before her death.

'Cats' is based on T. S. Eliot's 'Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats', but the lyrics to 'Memory' were adapted by Trevor Nunn from one of Eliot's earlier poems - 'Rhapsody on a Windy Night'. The musical premiered in the West End in 1981 and on Broadway the following year. It held the record for the longest-running Broadway show from 1997 until 2006 (when it was dislodged by 'The Phantom of the Opera', another of Lloyd Webber's productions).

Source: Author Fifiona81

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor ponycargirl before going online.
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Questions		Choices
1. 'Hakuna Matata': "I'm a sensitive soul though I seem thick-skinned; And it hurt that my friends never stood downwind"		Dog
2. 'Alone in the Universe': "I've been guarding this clover for over a week; Getting laughed at for thinking a dust speck can speak."		Crab
3. 'Hello Little Girl': "Look at that flesh; Pink and plump; Hello, little girl..."		Elephant
4. 'Don't Let Me Go': "Hey, hey, hey! You gotta let me go with you!; You don't know what it's like to be considered a freak!"		Donkey
5. 'You'll Be In My Heart': "For one so small, you seem so strong; My arms will hold you; Keep you safe and warm"		Cat
6. 'Under the Sea': "Under the sea; Under the sea; Darling it's better; Down where it's wetter"		Gorilla
7. 'Supper Time': "My stomach clock just went off. It's suppertime and Charlie Brown forgot to feed me."		Warthog
8. 'If I Only Had the Nerve': "Yeh, it's sad, believe me, Missy; When you're born to be a sissy"		Wolf
9. 'The Apple Tree (Forbidden Fruit)': "Just an apple a day; Wait and see; Come with me; To that tree!"		Snake
10. 'Memory': "I can dream of the old days; I was beautiful then; I remember the time I knew what happiness was; Let the memory live again"		Lion

Simply match up these snippets of songs from shows that have appeared on Broadway and/or London's West End with the type of animal that sang them - note that most of these creatures won't be found on a farm, even an 'animal' one...