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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. When was the Durant School of Dance founded?

2. What do dancers use to keep the edges of their ribbons from fraying?

3. Why do the other students pick on Bailey Bloom?

4. How did Mr. and Mrs. Durant die?

5. What does Charlie criticize Dara for in regards to Marie in Part I?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Marie do to prepare her own pointe shoes for wear?

2. What relationship do Dara, Marie and Charlie have for the longest time, until recently, in Part I?

3. What was the third floor of the dance studio originally for?

4. What has Marie done recently, before the start of the book, that Charlie and Dara are stung by?

5. Why has Marie been living at the dance studio?

6. What are Charlie's health problems and how did he develop them?

7. How do Dara's and Marie's parents die?

8. Why does Dara wait to tell Charlie about her worries about Marie in Part II?

9. What does Dara remember about her mother's and father's relationship?

10. What does Dara notice about Marie when she is around Derek, the contractor?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How do Charlie's terrible dance-related injuries affect his and Dara's marriage? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your answers.

Essay Topic 2

What details about her sexual relationship with Derek does Marie tell Dara, and why do you think Marie tells Dara such intimate information? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

How do the other students treat Bailey Bloom after she is cast as Clara in The Nutcracker, and what does this behavior reveal about the nature of ballet and its students, in Dara's opinion? Write an essay explaining your answers.

(see the answer keys)

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