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Quiz about Operas Based on Shakespeares Plays
Quiz about Operas Based on Shakespeares Plays

Operas Based on Shakespeare's Plays Quiz

Many of the world's greatest composers have been attracted to Shakespeare's plays as the basis for their operas. This quiz covers some of the most famous, as well as other rather more obscure examples of the genre.

A multiple-choice quiz by stedman. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
stedman
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
87,463
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
15
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
9 / 15
Plays
1547
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
Last 3 plays: haydenspapa (14/15), Guest 51 (12/15), Guest 147 (4/15).
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Question 1 of 15
1. Stephen Storace's "Gli Equivoci" is one of the earliest Shakespearean operas. On which play is it based? Hint


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Question 2 of 15
2. Whose opera "Otello", premiered in 1816, was based on "Othello"? Hint


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Question 3 of 15
3. Which French composer, a great admirer of Shakespeare, wrote "Beatrice et Benedict", based on "Much Ado About Nothing"? Hint


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Question 4 of 15
4. Which of these composers did NOT write an opera based on "The Merry Wives of Windsor"? Hint


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Question 5 of 15
5. Which English composer wrote the opera "A Midsummer Night's Dream"? Hint


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Question 6 of 15
6. Which composer wrote "Das Liebesverbot"? Hint


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Question 7 of 15
7. And on which play is "Das Liebesverbot" based? Hint


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Question 8 of 15
8. An even rarer opera, "Der Widerspenstigen Zahmung" (1874), by Herman Goetz, was based on which Shakespeare comedy? Hint


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Question 9 of 15
9. Several composers, including Verdi and Britten, contemplated operas based on "King Lear". But which German composer eventually produced the goods? Hint


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Question 10 of 15
10. While on the subject of the great tragedies, Ambroise Thomas wrote an opera based on which one? Hint


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Question 11 of 15
11. None of Michael Tippett's five operas are based directly on Shakespeare. But which of them draws closely on themes and characters from "The Tempest"? Hint


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Question 12 of 15
12. For the inauguration of its new house at Lincoln Centre in 1966, the Metropolitan Opera of New York commissioned Samuel Barber to compose an opera based on which play? Hint


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Question 13 of 15
13. Bellini's "I Capuleti e i Montecchi" is based loosely on "Romeo and Juliet". Its final scene departs from Shakespeare in what essential detail? Hint


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Question 14 of 15
14. Which was the first of Verdi's three Shakespeare operas? Hint


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Question 15 of 15
15. And finally, one of the most surprising choices for operatic treatment: whose "Timon of Athens" was premiered by English National Opera in 1991? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Nov 14 2024 : haydenspapa: 14/15
Oct 21 2024 : Guest 51: 12/15
Oct 05 2024 : Guest 147: 4/15

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Stephen Storace's "Gli Equivoci" is one of the earliest Shakespearean operas. On which play is it based?

Answer: The Comedy of Errors

 First performed in 1786, it has a libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte, librettist of Mozart's "Don Giovanni", "Marriage of Figaro" and "Cosi Fan Tutte".
2. Whose opera "Otello", premiered in 1816, was based on "Othello"?

Answer: Gioacchino Rossini

 A bit of a trick question - Verdi's better known version did not appear until 1887. Rossini's opera was totally eclipsed by that of Verdi, but has benefited from the recent revival of interest in Rossini's serious operas, and has been produced by a number of major opera houses.
3. Which French composer, a great admirer of Shakespeare, wrote "Beatrice et Benedict", based on "Much Ado About Nothing"?

Answer: Hector Berlioz

 Berlioz also wrote a "dramatic symphony" for soloists, chorus and orchestra based on "Romeo and Juliet".
4. Which of these composers did NOT write an opera based on "The Merry Wives of Windsor"?

Answer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

 Mozart's "rival", Salieri, did however write one - "Falstaff" (1799). The others referred to here are Verdi's "Falstaff" (1893), Nicolai's "Die Lustigen Weiber von Windsor" (1849) and Vaughan Williams' "Sir John in Love" (1928).
5. Which English composer wrote the opera "A Midsummer Night's Dream"?

Answer: Benjamin Britten

 Britten's opera is unusual in that it actually sets Shakespeare's original text, albeit in an edited version.
6. Which composer wrote "Das Liebesverbot"?

Answer: Richard Wagner

 Wagner's second opera (1836), after "Die Feen" ("The Fairies").
7. And on which play is "Das Liebesverbot" based?

Answer: Measure for Measure

 The title translates roughly as "The Love Ban", which is a bit of a clue if you know the play. There is no other known operatic version of "Measure for Measure"!
8. An even rarer opera, "Der Widerspenstigen Zahmung" (1874), by Herman Goetz, was based on which Shakespeare comedy?

Answer: The Taming of the Shrew

 Was performed at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1916, but little known since.
9. Several composers, including Verdi and Britten, contemplated operas based on "King Lear". But which German composer eventually produced the goods?

Answer: Aribert Reimann

 Reimann's opera was first produced in 1978. Since then, a setting by the Finnish composer Aulis Sallinen has also appeared (2000).
10. While on the subject of the great tragedies, Ambroise Thomas wrote an opera based on which one?

Answer: Hamlet

 The English composer Humphrey Searle also wrote a "Hamlet", and his compatriot Giles Swayne is writing one for the English company Opera North.
11. None of Michael Tippett's five operas are based directly on Shakespeare. But which of them draws closely on themes and characters from "The Tempest"?

Answer: The Knot Garden

 The parallels are particularly close in the third Act, when the characters enact a series of "charades" based on Shakespeare's play. But Mangus throughout is identified with "Prospero".
12. For the inauguration of its new house at Lincoln Centre in 1966, the Metropolitan Opera of New York commissioned Samuel Barber to compose an opera based on which play?

Answer: Antony and Cleopatra

 Sadly, a resounding flop in its first production. Barber never fully got over the critical mauling both he and his opera received, and he wrote little of substance subsequently.
13. Bellini's "I Capuleti e i Montecchi" is based loosely on "Romeo and Juliet". Its final scene departs from Shakespeare in what essential detail?

Answer: Juliet dies of grief rather than stabbing herself

 Both this and Gounod's version depart from Shakespeare in allowing the two lovers one final duet in the tomb before they die: certainly a more operatic conclusion!
14. Which was the first of Verdi's three Shakespeare operas?

Answer: Macbeth

 A relatively early work, composed in 1847, between "Attila" and "I Masnadieri". Verdi revised it much later, in 1865, not necessarily for the better.
15. And finally, one of the most surprising choices for operatic treatment: whose "Timon of Athens" was premiered by English National Opera in 1991?

Answer: Stephen Oliver

 Oliver died tragically young the year after "Timon"'s premiere, aged 42. Among his other operatic works is a 15-minute piece entitled "The Ring". This has nothing to do with Wagner, but is based on characters in the UK TV series "Coronation Street"!
Source: Author stedman

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bullymom before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.
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Referenced Topics
Music   World   Other Music   English   French Language   Opera   New York   Comedy Music   German Language   Composers   Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart   Richard Wagner   French: Famous & Historical   Germans: Famous & Historical   Cleopatra  

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