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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Diana's last name in Next to Normal?

2. What does Diana do while stating "I miss my life" in Act 1, Scene 4?

3. What refers to anything, as an act or event, that serves as a stimulus and initiates or precipitates a reaction or series of reactions?

4. In what year did Next to Normal win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama?

5. Who does Diana comment was as "high-spirited" as she is when speaking with her new doctor in Act 1, Scene 8?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the subject and style of the song "Superboy and the Invisible Girl"? Who sings it?

2. What does Dr. Madden suggest to Diana in Act 1, Scene 10? Where does she go after she leaves his office?

3. What is sung about and by whom in the songs "Who's Crazy" / "My Psychopharmacologist and I"?

4. What does Dr. Madden reveal after Diana's song in Act 1, Scene 10? What treatment does he suggest?

5. How is Gabe different as a character from the others in Act 1, Scenes 1-3?

6. How is the Goodman family portrayed in the first scenes of Act 1?

7. How is the theme of hope and light symbolized in Act 1, Scenes 10 and 11?

8. What song does Dan sing to Diana about their son in Act 1, Scene 5? What does the song reveal?

9. What songs are sung by the doctor and Gabe in Act 1, Scene 9? What do they describe?

10. What does Dan sing about in the song "It's Gonna Be Good"? Where is he?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the musical elements, structure and terms in Act 1, Scene 1. How are the music and dialogue intercut and what effect does this have on the reader/audience?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze the role of the choral ensemble in Next to Normal. How does the chorus relate to choruses of the Classical Greek theater?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and analyze the characters of Dan and Dr. Fine in the musical. What is the objective of each of these characters and how do they go about attaining those objectives?

(see the answer keys)

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