Identification of Plays - AP English Literature and Composition
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Which of the following is an absurdist, existentialist play that focuses on characters from a Shakespearian tragedy?
Which of the following is an absurdist, existentialist play that focuses on characters from a Shakespearian tragedy?
This brief overview describes Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, first performed in 1966. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are minor characters from Shakespeare's Hamlet who are presumably killed off-stage over the course of the play.
This brief overview describes Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, first performed in 1966. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are minor characters from Shakespeare's Hamlet who are presumably killed off-stage over the course of the play.
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Anthonio Salieri, Constanze Weber, and Emperor Joseph II are characters from which of the following plays?
Anthonio Salieri, Constanze Weber, and Emperor Joseph II are characters from which of the following plays?
Anthonio Salieri, Constanze Weber, and Emperor Joseph II are characters in Peter Shaffer's 1979 play Amadeus, which creates a fictionalized plot centering on composers, Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri. The play is based on the 1830 play by Alexander Pushkin, Mozart and Salieri.
Anthonio Salieri, Constanze Weber, and Emperor Joseph II are characters in Peter Shaffer's 1979 play Amadeus, which creates a fictionalized plot centering on composers, Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri. The play is based on the 1830 play by Alexander Pushkin, Mozart and Salieri.
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The Common Man, Sir Thomas More, and Thomas Cromwell are characters in which of the following plays?
The Common Man, Sir Thomas More, and Thomas Cromwell are characters in which of the following plays?
The Common Man, Sir Thomas More, and Thomas Cromwell are characters from the 1960 play A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt. The play follows the life of Sir Thomas More, the sixteenth-century Chancellor of England—a "man of conscience."
The Common Man, Sir Thomas More, and Thomas Cromwell are characters from the 1960 play A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt. The play follows the life of Sir Thomas More, the sixteenth-century Chancellor of England—a "man of conscience."
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This play switches back and forth between the year 1809 and the present. Some of the main characters include Thomasina Coverly, Septimus Hodge, Hannah Jarvis, and Bernard Nightingale.
This play switches back and forth between the year 1809 and the present. Some of the main characters include Thomasina Coverly, Septimus Hodge, Hannah Jarvis, and Bernard Nightingale.
This is a brief overview of Arcadia by Tom Stoppard, a play first performed in 1993.
This is a brief overview of Arcadia by Tom Stoppard, a play first performed in 1993.
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What play centers on two hit-men, Ben and Gus, who are awaiting their next assignment in a windowless basement?
What play centers on two hit-men, Ben and Gus, who are awaiting their next assignment in a windowless basement?
This overview describes the one-act play The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter.
This overview describes the one-act play The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter.
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This play's title is taken from a line in Shelley's poem "To a Skylark."
This play's title is taken from a line in Shelley's poem "To a Skylark."
The title ofNoel Coward's 1941 comic play, Blithe Spirit, is taken from a the first line of Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "To a Skylark":
"Hail to thee, blithe Spirit!
Bird thou never wert,
That from Heaven, or near it,
Pourest thy full heart
In profuse strains of unpremeditated art."
The play itself focuses on novelist Charles Condomine and medium Madame Arcati's failed attempt to conduct a seance.
Passage adapted from "To a Skylark" l.1-5 by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1820)
The title ofNoel Coward's 1941 comic play, Blithe Spirit, is taken from a the first line of Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem "To a Skylark":
"Hail to thee, blithe Spirit!
Bird thou never wert,
That from Heaven, or near it,
Pourest thy full heart
In profuse strains of unpremeditated art."
The play itself focuses on novelist Charles Condomine and medium Madame Arcati's failed attempt to conduct a seance.
Passage adapted from "To a Skylark" l.1-5 by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1820)
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Blanche DuBois, Stella Kowalski, and Harold Mitchell are major characters from which of the following plays?
Blanche DuBois, Stella Kowalski, and Harold Mitchell are major characters from which of the following plays?
These are central characters in Tennessee Williams' 1947 American play, A Streetcar Named Desire. The plot follows Blanche Dubois who abandons her previous life of aristocracy after a series of personal failures to live with her brother and sister-in-law in New Orleans. It won the Pulitzer Prize in 1948.
These are central characters in Tennessee Williams' 1947 American play, A Streetcar Named Desire. The plot follows Blanche Dubois who abandons her previous life of aristocracy after a series of personal failures to live with her brother and sister-in-law in New Orleans. It won the Pulitzer Prize in 1948.
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Mary Cavan Tyrone, James Tyrone, and Cathleen are main characters in which of the following American plays?
Mary Cavan Tyrone, James Tyrone, and Cathleen are main characters in which of the following American plays?
Mary Cavan Tyrone, James Tyrone, and Cathleen are primary characters in Eugene O'Neill's 1956 play, Long Day's Journey Into Night. It is a drama written in four parts between 1941 and 1942. It was the Pulitzer Prize winner in 1957.
Mary Cavan Tyrone, James Tyrone, and Cathleen are primary characters in Eugene O'Neill's 1956 play, Long Day's Journey Into Night. It is a drama written in four parts between 1941 and 1942. It was the Pulitzer Prize winner in 1957.
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Which of the following is an English-language opera that tells the story of a black beggar and his lover in Charleston, South Carolina and is often discussed in terms of its racial significance and shortcomings?
Which of the following is an English-language opera that tells the story of a black beggar and his lover in Charleston, South Carolina and is often discussed in terms of its racial significance and shortcomings?
This question describes the 1934 Porgy and Bess, first performed in New York City by a controversial cast of all-African-American singers. The play is known for its jazz style, its famous song “Summertime” (since covered by many performers), and for its questionable perpetuation of racial stereotypes. It has gone in and out of fashion for the eighty years since its debut. The play introduces important questions such as the role of the black performer in theater and the use of stereotypes by white composers.
This question describes the 1934 Porgy and Bess, first performed in New York City by a controversial cast of all-African-American singers. The play is known for its jazz style, its famous song “Summertime” (since covered by many performers), and for its questionable perpetuation of racial stereotypes. It has gone in and out of fashion for the eighty years since its debut. The play introduces important questions such as the role of the black performer in theater and the use of stereotypes by white composers.
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Who is the author of the canonical American play The Crucible?
Who is the author of the canonical American play The Crucible?
The author is Arthur Miller, and the play, written in 1953, concerns the late-seventeenth-century Salem witch trials in the Massachusetts Bay province of America. The play is intended as an allegory of the 1950s Red Scare and McCarthyism, when the U.S. government became paranoid about the possibility of communism infiltrating the country. As a result of the play (which includes characters such as Abigail Williams, John and Elizabeth Proctor, Tituba, Mary William, Giles Corey, and Reverend Samuel Parris), Miller was questioned by the House Un-American Activities Committee and charged with contempt of Congress.
The author is Arthur Miller, and the play, written in 1953, concerns the late-seventeenth-century Salem witch trials in the Massachusetts Bay province of America. The play is intended as an allegory of the 1950s Red Scare and McCarthyism, when the U.S. government became paranoid about the possibility of communism infiltrating the country. As a result of the play (which includes characters such as Abigail Williams, John and Elizabeth Proctor, Tituba, Mary William, Giles Corey, and Reverend Samuel Parris), Miller was questioned by the House Un-American Activities Committee and charged with contempt of Congress.
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Which Tennessee Williams “memory play” features the reminisces of Tom, the protagonist, about three other characters and is renowned for its examination of family ties and mental illness?
Which Tennessee Williams “memory play” features the reminisces of Tom, the protagonist, about three other characters and is renowned for its examination of family ties and mental illness?
The play in question is Williams’ 1944 play The Glass Menagerie. The play features narrator Tom Wingfield; matriarch Amanda Wingfield, whose husband abandoned the family and whose glory days as a Southern debutante have long faded; the cripplingly shy Laura Wingfield, Tom’s sister and Amanda’s daughter; and the deceitful prospective suitor Jim O’Connor.
The play in question is Williams’ 1944 play The Glass Menagerie. The play features narrator Tom Wingfield; matriarch Amanda Wingfield, whose husband abandoned the family and whose glory days as a Southern debutante have long faded; the cripplingly shy Laura Wingfield, Tom’s sister and Amanda’s daughter; and the deceitful prospective suitor Jim O’Connor.
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Which of the following works is based on a play by William Shakespeare?
Which of the following works is based on a play by William Shakespeare?
Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s West Side Story is based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Originally performed on Broadway in 1957, the musical is set in a neighborhood of immigrants in New York City’s Upper West Side. Like Romeo and Juliet, it includes themes such as love, death, loyalty, and family, but it is also concerned with tensions between immigrants and native citizens in America during the 1950s.
Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s West Side Story is based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Originally performed on Broadway in 1957, the musical is set in a neighborhood of immigrants in New York City’s Upper West Side. Like Romeo and Juliet, it includes themes such as love, death, loyalty, and family, but it is also concerned with tensions between immigrants and native citizens in America during the 1950s.
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Which American playwright is known for works such as Long Day’s Journey Into Night, The Iceman Cometh, and Mourning Becomes Electra?
Which American playwright is known for works such as Long Day’s Journey Into Night, The Iceman Cometh, and Mourning Becomes Electra?
The playwright who wrote the plays listed is Eugene O’Neill, a native of New York City and a recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature. O’Neill is widely regarded as one of the most important dramatists in twentieth-century America, and his work makes use of American vernacular, characters who are outcasts or misfits, and a stark, sometimes relentless realism.
The playwright who wrote the plays listed is Eugene O’Neill, a native of New York City and a recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature. O’Neill is widely regarded as one of the most important dramatists in twentieth-century America, and his work makes use of American vernacular, characters who are outcasts or misfits, and a stark, sometimes relentless realism.
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This Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tony Kushner focuses on sexuality and the AIDS epidemic in 1980s New York City.
This Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tony Kushner focuses on sexuality and the AIDS epidemic in 1980s New York City.
Although all the titles listed above are American plays dealing with AIDS, only the 1993 Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes was written by Tony Kushner. It is by far the most famous work of the Kushner’s and includes character doubling, interweaving storylines, and various angels and imaginary friends.
Although all the titles listed above are American plays dealing with AIDS, only the 1993 Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes was written by Tony Kushner. It is by far the most famous work of the Kushner’s and includes character doubling, interweaving storylines, and various angels and imaginary friends.
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This 1965 comedy by Neil Simon follows the ill-suited relationship between roommates Felix Ungar and Oscar Madison. What play is it?
This 1965 comedy by Neil Simon follows the ill-suited relationship between roommates Felix Ungar and Oscar Madison. What play is it?
The play described is The Odd Couple, which follows the tiffs and jokes of Oscar, a notoriously laidback slob, and Felix, an extremely organized neat-freak. The play’s main premise is that the two recently divorced main characters become roommates out of financial necessity but end up forming their own close relationship.
The play described is The Odd Couple, which follows the tiffs and jokes of Oscar, a notoriously laidback slob, and Felix, an extremely organized neat-freak. The play’s main premise is that the two recently divorced main characters become roommates out of financial necessity but end up forming their own close relationship.
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Which 1959 play takes its title from the Langston Hughes poem “A Dream Deferred”?
Which 1959 play takes its title from the Langston Hughes poem “A Dream Deferred”?
The play in question is A Raisin in the Sun, a work that portrays the experiences of an impoverished black family in mid-century Chicago. It is known for its cast of almost exclusively African-American characters as well as its involvement in a U.S. Supreme Court case about racist housing policies.
The play in question is A Raisin in the Sun, a work that portrays the experiences of an impoverished black family in mid-century Chicago. It is known for its cast of almost exclusively African-American characters as well as its involvement in a U.S. Supreme Court case about racist housing policies.
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What theatrical genre is characterized by its series of unrelated music, magic, comedy, dancing, and/or circus acts all on one playbill?
What theatrical genre is characterized by its series of unrelated music, magic, comedy, dancing, and/or circus acts all on one playbill?
The theatrical genre described in the question is vaudeville, a genre that developed in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century America. It has its roots in a range of different disciplines, including stage magic, burlesque, circus sideshows, and musical theater.
The theatrical genre described in the question is vaudeville, a genre that developed in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century America. It has its roots in a range of different disciplines, including stage magic, burlesque, circus sideshows, and musical theater.
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Who wrote Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Who wrote Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
The author is Edward Albee, an award-winning American playwright who was born in 1928. The play follows the disintegration of the marriage of an impotent middle-aged couple and is remarkable for its interplay of reality and illusion.
The author is Edward Albee, an award-winning American playwright who was born in 1928. The play follows the disintegration of the marriage of an impotent middle-aged couple and is remarkable for its interplay of reality and illusion.
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Which of the following is the title of an absurdist tragicomedy by Tom Stoppard?
Which of the following is the title of an absurdist tragicomedy by Tom Stoppard?
The play described in the question stem is Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, which follows the offstage adventures of Hamlet’s two hapless friends. The conceit is that the eponymous characters are confused by the plot of Hamlet, which they aren’t privy to, and this conceit allows Stoppard to pose strong existential questions about human purpose and determinism.
The play described in the question stem is Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, which follows the offstage adventures of Hamlet’s two hapless friends. The conceit is that the eponymous characters are confused by the plot of Hamlet, which they aren’t privy to, and this conceit allows Stoppard to pose strong existential questions about human purpose and determinism.
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Glengarry Glen Ross was written by which American playwright?
Glengarry Glen Ross was written by which American playwright?
Glengarry Glen Ross was written by David Mamet and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984. It centers on the machinations of four unscrupulous real estate agents in Chicago who are trying their best to sell the two pieces of real estate in the play’s title. It is known for its exquisite dialogues and attention to language.
Glengarry Glen Ross was written by David Mamet and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984. It centers on the machinations of four unscrupulous real estate agents in Chicago who are trying their best to sell the two pieces of real estate in the play’s title. It is known for its exquisite dialogues and attention to language.
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