New York Theater Quiz December 2017 Special Year End Edition

Q.1

True or false: “Jitney,” which opened on Broadway in January, was the first play August Wilson wrote in his ten-play American Century Cycle, but the last of the ten to be produced on Broadway.

True
False

Q.2

A play by which Pulitzer winning playwright was turned into a weekly TV sitcom starting in February?

Edward Albee
Stephen Adly Guirgis
Tony Kushner
Tracy Letts
Neil Simon

Q.3

Who said this about what in an interview published in March: “I was like ‘Oh my god, I’m going to have a brain hemorrhage if I just stay here for 30 more seconds.’”?

Critic Charles Isherwood about the New York Times, after the announcement of his new gig as contributing critic at the newly created Broadway News.
Critic Jesse Green about New York Magazine, after the announcement that he would become the new co-chief theater critic at the New York Times.
Eight-year-old Iain Armitage about his three-year career as a theater critic on YouTube, after the announcement that he would star in a TV series that's a prequel to the Big Bang Theory, entitled "Young Sheldon."
Performer Laurie Anderson about attending Cats

Q.4

Seven musicals opened on Broadway in April. Which of them included this lyric? If we were singing Hammerstein songs/ We could fix all the wrongs in rhyme/ But this is life/ With the heartache it brings/ And we know that these things take time

Amelie
Anastasia
Bandstand
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Groundhog Day
Hello, Dolly
War Paint

Q.5

“This is the hardest job I’ve ever had in my whole life. You people on Broadway are nuts.” Who said this in May?

Cate Blanchett
Danny DeVito
Josh Groban
Bette Midler

Q.6

Which winner of a 2017 Tony Award said in their acceptance speech: “Don't waste any time being anyone but yourself because the things that make you strange are the things that make you powerful."

Michael Aranov
Kevin Kline
Laurie Metcalf
Bette Midler
Cynthia Nixon
Ben Platt

Q.8

What is not true of Barbara Cook, who died in August at the age of 89?

She was the reigning soprano ingénue on Broadway in her 20s and 30s, originating leading roles in such landmark musicals as The Music Man, She Loves Me, and Candide.
Her Broadway career ended because of alcoholism, depression and over-eating.
She reinvented herself as a cabaret and concert singer and recording artist praised as a premier interpreter of the Great American Songbook.
She never learned to read music
She hated ice cream, which was ironically the title of what became her signature song
She taught a master class in singing in which she told her students to stop acting like singing machines and become human beings. Concentrate on what you’re trying to say with this song; the words have to matter.

Q.9

Which of the following explained in September that they went to Broadway shows to cheer up? “There’s nothing like a play to make you forget your troubles for a few hours,” they wrote. “In my experience, even a mediocre play can transport you. And show tunes are the best soundtrack for tough times. You think you’re sad? Let’s hear what Fantine from Les Misérables has to say about that!”

Hillary Clinton
World Series-losing Dodgers pitcher Yu Darvish
Indicted former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort
Losing Alabama Sen. Luther Strange

Q.10

After Anthony Rapp accused Kevin Spacey of making a sexual advance when both were performing on Broadway, and Rapp was 14 years old, 97 theaters in Great Britain issued a joint statement in October against sexual harassment. True or false, New York theaters issued a similar industry-wide statement soon afterwards.

True
False

Q.11

Which Broadway musical was represented in the 91st annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade by both a character from the show featured as a balloon, and the cast performing a number from the show during the broadcast?

Anastasia
Dear Evan Hansen
Frozen
SpongeBob SquarePants

Q.13

Which name below of people who were involved in New York theater in 2017 is spelled incorrectly?

Andy Blankenbuehler, director and choreographer of Bandstand
Okieriete Onaodowan, actor who originated Mulligan/Madison in Hamilton, then starred briefly in The Great Comet
Adam Chanler-Berat, male lead in Amelie
Philippa Soo, star of Amelie
Moritz von Stuelpnagel, director of Present Laughter
John Wyszniewski, theater publicist