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Quiz about Maddeningly Obscure Theatre History Trivia

Maddeningly Obscure Theatre History Trivia Quiz

Years of studying theatre has filled my head with lots of useless information. I have confined the quiz to the 20th century.

A multiple-choice quiz by matriplex. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
matriplex

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
249,543

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
2598

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

Last 3 plays: Guest 185 (5/10), ncrmd (5/10), hellobion (6/10).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. What Irish playwright authored 'The Playboy of the Western World?' Hint

John Millington Synge

Sean O'Casey

W.B. Yeats

Brendan Behan

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Question 2 of 10

2. Who played Happy Loman in the original production of "Death of a Salesman"? Hint

Howard Smith

Arthur Kennedy

Cameron Mitchell

Don Keefer

3. Marlon Brando was, of course, the original Stanely Kowalski in Tennessee Williams' 'A Streetcar Named Desire". But he naturally missed some performances and left the production before the run was completed. Which of the following actors did NOT play Stanley Kowalski in the play's original Broadway run? Hint

Paul Newman

Ralph Meeker

Anthony Quinn

Jack Palance

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. Who was Richard Rodgers' songwriting partner before he teamed up with Oscar Hammerstein II? Hint

Dorothy Fields

Frank Loesser

Lorenz Hart

E.Y. Harburg

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Question 5 of 10

5. Which of the following terms has not been used to describe the work of Bertolt Brecht? Hint

The Alienation Effect

Historification

Epic Theatre

Theatre of the Absurd

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. A controversial American film actress played the lead role of Lorna in the original production of Clifford Odets' "Golden Boy". What was her name? Hint

Barbara Stanwyck

Uta Hagen

Dorothy Comingore

Frances Farmer

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Question 7 of 10

7. Who is the Russian director/acting teacher whose 'system' of actor training heavily influenced 'method' acting in the U.S.? Hint

Constantin Stanislavski

Anton Chekhov

Vsevolod Meyerhold

Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. What was Kaufman and Hart's first collaboration? Hint

Once in a Lifetime

The Man Who Came to Dinner

Merrily We Roll Along

You Can't Take it With You

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Question 9 of 10

9. Yes, it's true. They tried to make a musical out of "Breakast at Tiffany's". Who played Holly Golightly in this mega-flop that never even opened on Broadway? Hint

Mary Tyler Moore

Liza Minnelli

Audrey Hepburn

Carol Lawrence

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. In the original 1930 production of Noel Coward's "Private Lives", what future British film star played Amanda's cuckolded husband? Hint

Leslie Howard

Robert Donat

Michael Redgrave

Laurence Olivier

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Most Recent Scores

Dec 01 2024 : Guest 185: 5/10
Nov 27 2024 : ncrmd: 5/10
Nov 25 2024 : hellobion: 6/10

Score Distribution

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. What Irish playwright authored 'The Playboy of the Western World?'

Answer: John Millington Synge

The play prompted indignant responses wherever it went because of its perceived slur on Irish womanhood.

2. Who played Happy Loman in the original production of "Death of a Salesman"?

Answer: Cameron Mitchell

And:
Arthur Kennedy played Biff
Don Keefer played Bernard
Howard Smith played Charley
and, of course, Lee J. Cobb played Willy

Answer: Paul Newman

Brando broke his nose in a fight backstage one night. Jack Palance had to go on in his place.

4. Who was Richard Rodgers' songwriting partner before he teamed up with Oscar Hammerstein II?

Answer: Lorenz Hart

A quick list of some of their songs indicates just how prolific and important Rodgers and Hart were:
"Isn't It Romantic?," "Where Or When," "My Funny Valentine," "Johnny One Note," "The Lady Is A Tramp".
Their best shows included 'Pal Joey' and 'The Boys from Syracuse'.

5. Which of the following terms has not been used to describe the work of Bertolt Brecht?

Answer: Theatre of the Absurd

Brecht came to America when Hitler came to power in his native Germany. After the war, he was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee and grilled about his political beliefs. He left to go home to Germany the very next day.

6. A controversial American film actress played the lead role of Lorna in the original production of Clifford Odets' "Golden Boy". What was her name?

Answer: Frances Farmer

Frances Farmer also had an affair with Odets, married at the time to Luise Rainer. Farmer's sad story is way too long and sordid to recount here. Suffice it to say that she was arrested on several occasions, was in and out of mental hospitals and may have been lobotomized. See the 1983 Jessica Lange film "Frances" for a colorful account of Farmer's life.

Incidentally, Barbara Stanwyck played the role in the film version of "Golden Boy" opposite a very young William Holden.

7. Who is the Russian director/acting teacher whose 'system' of actor training heavily influenced 'method' acting in the U.S.?

Answer: Constantin Stanislavski

The Stanislavski System served as the model for the actor training that was to take place at the Actors' Studio under the tutelage of Lee Strasberg. Many critics believe that Strasberg misinterpreted Stanisavski's system. Who cares? Strasberg taught Brando, Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro and lots of other successful actors whose names did not end in a vowel.

8. What was Kaufman and Hart's first collaboration?

Answer: Once in a Lifetime

Read Moss Hart's colorful biography 'Act One' for a vivid account of their work on this play. Or can you see the cheesy 1960s film version of 'Act One' in which Moss Hart is played by--wait for it--George Hamilton. Jason Robards is slightly more believable as Kaufman.

9. Yes, it's true. They tried to make a musical out of "Breakast at Tiffany's". Who played Holly Golightly in this mega-flop that never even opened on Broadway?

Answer: Mary Tyler Moore

With Richard Chamberlain in the George Peppard role. And Edward Albee wrote the book!

10. In the original 1930 production of Noel Coward's "Private Lives", what future British film star played Amanda's cuckolded husband?

Answer: Laurence Olivier

Olivier had a bad and very unprofessional habit of 'cracking up' on stage. He would later credit Coward for curing him of this habit during the run of "Private Lives".

Source: Author matriplex

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