Harry Potter
What are the four Hogwarts houses?
gryffindor, Ravenclaw, huffelpuff and slytherin
What Shakespeare comedy is She’s the Man based on?
A) midsummer nights dream
B) twelfth night
C) as you like it
D) much ado about nothing
B) Twelfth night
What holiday do we eat apples and honey and what do they represent?
Rosh hashanah, a sweet new year
Rochester is now known as the Flower city, but what was its original moniker and why?
The flour city
What is my favorite opera, and who composed it?
Salome, Richard Strauss
In the first book, what does Hagrid win from a hooded stranger as a prize in a game of cards at the pub?
In Bend it like Beckham, what misunderstanding leads to Pinky’s wedding being called off temporarily?
Pinki’s fiancees parents catch Jess “kissing an english boy“, when she is really just laughing at a bus stop with Juliette.
What is forbidden to eat on Passover? Bonus points if you know the Hebrew term!
Chametz (Any leavened food products)
Highland Park was designed by what landscape architect? (10 bonus points for each additional park you can name that he designed)
Frederick Law Olmsted (Acceptable answers include: Central Park, Prospect Park, Mont Royal Park, Emerald Necklace in Boston, ETC)
What instrument was invented by Benjamin Franklin? (Bonus points if you know what some people believed about this instrument)
The glass armonica
Bonus: They believed it caused madness
In the 5th book, what does Professor Umbridge force Harry to write over and over (until the message sinks in)?
I must not tell lies
In Legally Blonde, what is Brooke Wyndham’s alibi for why she can’t have murdered her husband and why can’t she give it?
She was getting liposuction, she’s a fitness instructor and it will ruin her reputation
On Hanukkah eastern European Jews eat latkes, but what special food do Jews in Israel eat on Hanukkah? Bonus points for the Hebrew term!
Jelly Donuts
Bonus: Sufganiyot
Besides Kodak, what major company was founded in Rochester? (Bonus points for what year it was founded)
Xerox
Bonus: 1906
What happened during the first performance of “The Rite of Spring” by Igor Stravinsky?
A riot broke out with shouting, arguments and even physical alterations
Who gains possession of the Elder wand after Dumbledore is killed?
Draco Malfoy
In 13 going on 30, what song is Jenna listening to on MTV before her 13th birthday party?
Jessie’s Girl by Rick Springfield
What components make up a Hillel Sandwich and what does it represent?
Charoset and Maror eaten on matzah, representing holding life’s bitter hardships and sweet blessings simultaneously
Wegmans is now one of the largest East Coast supermarket chains, but how did it start?
John and Walter Wegman started by selling vegetables off a push cart in 1916.
What is a “pants role” in opera? and what pants role did I play in college?
A mezzo soprano playing a man, Cherubino from The Marriage of Figaro
Name the 7 horcruxes (bonus points if you can name them in the order they were destroyed)
Tom Riddle’s diary, Marvolo Gaunt’s ring, Salazar Slytherin’s locket, huffelpuff’s cup, the lost diadem of Ravenclaw, nagini the snake, Harry
In Ella Enchanted, how does Ella finally break her curse of obedience?
She commands herself not to obey the order to kill Char because of her love for him
On Passover, the middle matzah is broken and the larger half becomes the afikoman. What is done with the afikoman and what does it represent?
Hidden for children to find, represents that ultimate redemption and freedom remain concealed and it is for the next generation to find and return to us
What dance company was founded in Rochester that famously choreographed the Broadway adaptation of The Lion King?
Garth Fagan Dance
What are the opening notes of Beethoven’s 5th symphony described as?
Fate knocking on the door