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Any Questions? #59

WAMC's Ian Pickus and resident quizzer Mike Nothnagel take a trip to the great white way.

Last week's challenge

Of the 129 Saturday Night Live cast members (as of May 2012), only two have names that can form a “before and after.” That is, the last name of one is the first name of another. Who are the actors? (As a hint, these two actors weren't cast members at the same time, but they have starred in movies together.)

That's how we read it on the air, and our intended answer was STEVE MARTIN and MARTIN SHORT. Unfortunately, that doesn't work. We perpetuated a common misconception: Despite having hosted some 15 times among many other guest appearances, Steve Martin was never a cast member on SNL. Apologies to all the listeners we (inadvertently) flustered.

THIS WEEK'S CATEGORY: BROADWAY MUSICALS
On-air questions: On October 12, 1971, Andrew Lloyd Webber's rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar opened on Broadway. (It opened to mixed reviews, and Lloyd Webber himself apparently wasn't too happy with the production.) Taking a little divine inspiration, this week our quiz is about Broadway musicals.

1. In 2006, the BBC aired a series titled How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?, a search for an undiscovered performer to play the lead role in a revival of what musical?
2. In 2003, Twyla Tharp choreographed Movin' Out, a jukebox musical featuring the songs of what rock musician?
3. What musical's 1995 revival starring Matthew Broderick and Megan Mullally was advertised with a poster featuring the letter H, the number 2, and a dollar sign?
4. Of the top six longest-running Broadway musicals, the only one that did not win the Tony Award for Best Musical during its original run features the song “All That Jazz.” What musical is it?
5. Monty Python's Spamalot was based on the British comedy troupe's 1975 film titled Monty Python and the what?

Extra credit
1. What musical debuted on Broadway in 1975, the same year as its film adaptation was released with the word "Picture" added to the title?
2. Debuting on Broadway in 2004, what musical (as its title suggests) has characters named Giuseppe Zangara, Sara Jane Moore, and Leon Czolgosz?

This week's challenge
Think of two of Broadway musical titles that each have four letters. Rearrange those eight letters to spell a two-word phrase (four letters in each word) that names something that an indoor performance wouldn't need. What are the musicals and what is the thing?

ANSWERS
On-air questions
1. The Sound of Music
2. Billy Joel
3. How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying
4. Chicago
5. Holy Grail

Extra credit
1. The Rocky Horror Show
2. Assassins
 

A lifelong resident of the Capital Region, Ian joined WAMC in late 2008 and became news director in 2013. He began working on Morning Edition and has produced The Capitol Connection, Congressional Corner, and several other WAMC programs. Ian can also be heard as the host of the WAMC News Podcast and on The Roundtable and various newscasts. Ian holds a BA in English and journalism and an MA in English, both from the University at Albany, where he has taught journalism since 2013.