Away Quizzes

Away Quiz 1

1 What Shakespeare play is used in the the opening scene of "Away"?
The Tempest

Othello

King Lear

A Midsummer Night's Dream
2 When Tom addresses the audience in the play's opening lines, what is his speech conceptually about?
An apology for a past misdeed Tom committed within his family

His knowledge of his impending death from leukemia

His as-of-yet undeclared love for Meg

The nature of drama and the artificial worlds created in the theater
3 What effect is created by juxtaposing Tom's opening speech with Roy's opening monologue?
A contrast is created between fantasy and reality, which continues throughout the rest of the play.

Tom's excellent performance as Puck is attributed to his youth, while Roy's stammering speech is seen as a consequence of his age.

Roy is unmasked as someone who cares little for the dramatic arts.

Miss Latrobe is presented as the commander of the fairies, which has implications for later in the play.
4 What does Tom gift to Meg after the conclusion of the play in Act 1?
A brooch

A bottle of perfume

A rattle

A necklace
5 What element of Tom and Meg's conversation in Act 1 foreshadows Tom's knowledge of his illness?
Tom saying that he will "wait and see" what happens to him when he grows up

Their discussion of performing a play as in America, where plays last for years and years on a nightly basis

The turn in their conversation towards the weather

Meg's attribution of "deep" and "soulful" qualities to Tom
6 What does Tom mean when he says that "still waters stink"?
He would prefer for their relationship to move at a faster pace.

People who put on a calm and placid exterior are likely acting inauthentically or covering up some flaw.

He knows Meg's father and thinks him to be a pushover when it comes to Gwen.

It is best not to vacation near a body of still water like a lake.
7 How do Tom and Meg claim that they first met one another?
By encountering each other late at night after both tried to run away

By sneaking cigarettes together between periods at school

By sitting next to each other during an important exam, where they were accused of cheating

By acting together in the play
8 Gwen and Jim's argument over the keys in Act 1, Scene 2 becomes a segue into a larger argument about what?
Roy's failure as headmaster to put on a more fun play like a musical

Gwen and Jim's disappointment that Meg is associating with Tom

Gwen attacking Jim for his supposed incompetence

Coral's inability to communicate well with others after her son's death
9 At the end of her argument with Jim, Gwen subtly reveals her dependence on what?
Tobacco

Cocaine

Bex

Alcohol
10 Before any discussion of vacations is conducted in Act 1, Scene 2, which of the following details most reveals that Vic and Harry are outsiders in the Australian setting of the play?
Their comparison of Tom to Laurence Olivier, a British actor, while others compare him to Australian actor Chips Rafferty

The fact that they enjoyed the play, while others seemed to view it as a kind of slog

Their identification of wicked, "hobgoblin" traits in Tom's performance

The fact that they are the last couple to show up backstage and chat with the others
11 Which of the following does NOT accurately describe the vacation plans of one of the families in the play?
Harry and Vic plan on driving around the countryside with a tent.

Harry and Vic plan on caravanning and staying near the beach in a spot that they frequent.

Coral and Roy plan on taking a plane to the Gold Coast.

Coral and Roy plan to stay in a posh hotel.
12 Which of the following is NOT an aspect of Vic and Harry's life critiqued by Gwen?
Their excessive praise of their son's acting skills

Their status as immigrants from England

Their lifestyle of tattoos and drinking

Their employment as blue-collar factory workers
13 Why does Gwen claim that she acts as she does with regard to Tom's relationship with Meg?
Out of a sense of sacrifice for her daughter's betterment, which she sees Tom as preventing

Out of a sense of moral superiority to Harry and Vic

Out of a sense of guilt, since she herself was once as poor as Vic and Harry

Out of a sense of nationalism and pride in her Australian upbringing
14 All of the following aspects of Coral's speech in Act 1, Scene 3 might be considered theatrical EXCEPT:
Her references to "A Midsummer Night's Dream," which she has just viewed

Her speech being given as a proper soliloquy

The overt and ostentatious costume she wears while making the speech

Her appropriation of the dramatic word "Alas"
15 The brief exchange between Coral and Roy in Act 1, Scene 3 reveals what?
Coral is prone to fits of hysteria, which are accompanied by hot flashes.

Roy is an alcoholic who uses drinking as a cure-all.

Coral has a fear of automobiles.

Roy often tries to control Coral, but she rarely listens to him.
16 What does Coral's speech in Act 1, Scene 3 mainly discuss?
The tensions inherent in her marriage with Roy

Her longing for a more free and creative life

The nature and vibrancy of youth, and how it can be snatched away by death

Her thoughts on the quality of the acting in the play she just watched
17 "Away" was first produced by:
The Griffin Theatre Company

The dramatic wing of the ABC network

The Sydney Theatre Comapny

The University of Sydney
18 Which of the following is NOT a topic of one of Michael Gow's plays?
Australia's colonial history

The struggles of New Zealand's lower classs

Family and marital drama

Writer's block
19 Apart from being a playwright, Michael Gow is also known as all of the following EXCEPT:
An actor in film productions

A writer for radio and television

A local politician in Australia

An actor in television productions
20 Today, "Away" is widely taught in which of the following settings?
Australian MFA programs

Australian high schools

English MFA programs

English high schools
21 Around what time does Gow claim he wrote the alternate ending for the play?
In the early 2010s

Right after the play was first performed

In the early 2000s

In the 1990s
22 What differs between the alternate and standard endings for the play?
In the alternate ending, Coral is revealed to have committed suicide.

In the alternate ending, Meg and Tom are implied to have eloped together.

In the alternate ending, Gwen has taken on the role of high school drama teacher.

In the alternate ending, Tom is absent from the final scene and implied to be dead.
23 In the alternate ending, which continuity is more strongly emphasized?
The continuity between the beach as a kind of antechamber to death and a world without Tom

The continuity between Tom's love for acting and Meg carrying on his legacy

The continuity between Vic and Harry's struggle and Gwen and Jim's

The continuity between Miss Latrobe's place at the play's opening and its close
24 Who did Michael Gow meet while studying drama at the University of Sydney?
His friend and longtime collaborator, Neil Armfield

The actress who would one day go on to star in "Sweet Phoebe," Cate Blanchett

The woman who would serve as inspiration for the character of Gwen in "Away"

Dame Pattie Menzies, who is referenced in the text of "Away"
25 Which of the following is NOT an honor received by "Away" upon its debut?
The Green Room Award

An Australian Writers’ Guild Major Award

The NSW Premier’s Literary Award

The Man Booker Prize

Away Questions and Answers

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