"O" For a Muse of Fire Trivia Quiz

Answer: A Midsummer Night's Dream

Oberon is the king of the fairies in Shakespeare's comedy "A Midsummer Night's Dream". It is he who concocts the love potion which causes so much mischief during the course of the play, including making his wife, Titania, fall in love with a weaver named Bottom who has (through more magic) been given the head of a donkey.

Answer: As You Like It

Orlando appears in Shakespeare's comedy "As You Like It". At the start of the play he is in love with Rosalind, the play's heroine, but is forced by his elder brother to flee to the Forest of Arden. Shortly afterwards Rosalind also turns up in the forest, disguised as a boy. After much Shakespearean intrigue and confusion, they are reconciled and married.

Answer: Twelfth Night

Orsino is the Duke of Illyria in Shakespeare's comedy "Twelfth Night". At the start of the play he is in love with Olivia, who is in mourning for the death of her brother. By the end of the play, after many misunderstandings, he has agreed to marry Viola, who has spent most of the play disguised as a boy, in best Shakespearean style.

Answer: Hamlet

Ophelia is the daughter of Polonius and sister of Laertes in Shakespeare's tragedy "Hamlet". She is in love with Hamlet but is driven insane by his irrational behaviour and drowns after falling into a brook. At her funeral, Hamlet jumps into her grave declaring (rather too late) that he loved her after all.

Answer: King Lear

Oswald appears in the tragedy "King Lear". He is the steward of Goneril, one of Lear's daughters, and is a weak and unpleasant character who willingly connives in his mistress's plots. While attempting to kill the blind Duke of Gloucester, he is himself killed by Edgar, Gloucester's son.

Answer: Antony and Cleopatra

Octavia is the sister of Octavius Caesar and later becomes the wife of Mark Antony in "Antony And Cleopatra". The marriage is for political reasons rather than romantic love, and Antony remains in love with Cleopatra. Unlike the two title characters, Octavia remains alive at the end of the play.

Answer: Henry V

The Duke of Orleans is one of the French nobles in "Henry V". While not a major character in the play, he appears in the scene set in the French camp before the Battle of Agincourt, and is one of those who mocks Henry and the English soldiers, believing the battle will be a resounding victory for the French. History (and Shakespeare) soon proves otherwise.

Answer: The Merchant of Venice

Old Gobbo appears in "The Merchant of Venice", and is the father of Launcelot Gobbo, the "clown" in that play. Old Gobbo is blind, which is the subject of some typically Shakespearean comic business between him and his son. This is sometimes omitted in productions of the play, being neither relevant to the plot nor particularly funny.

Answer: Much Ado About Nothing

Hugh Oatcake is a very minor character in "Much Ado About Nothing", being a member of the Watch which patrols the streets of Messina during the hours of night. The Watch as a whole act as "comic relief" during the play, being a group of well-meaning but dim-witted working men, similar to the "rude mechanicals" in "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

Answer: Measure for Measure

Mistress Overdone is a "bawd", or keeper of a brothel, in "Measure For Measure". Her business is closed down by order of the Deputy of Vienna, Angelo, which naturally causes her much annoyance. She is one of the rough, plain-speaking characters in the play who serve to highlight Angelo's hypocrisy.