A Streetcar Named Desire - Other Productions

Southern Gothic Influence

- A genre characterised by decay, grotesque characters + psychological distress

- Streetcar exposes the dark undercutes of Southern life (repressed desires, mental instability + social decay)

Southern Gothic Influence - Elia Kazan

- Captures gothic atmosphere through dim lighting, claustrophobic interiors + a dreamlike depiction of New Orleans

Cultural & Gender dynamics

- Blanche adheres to traditional expectations of femininity

- Finds herself powerless in the face of Stanley’s aggression

- Highlights areas anxieties about changing gender roles, particularly in post WWII America

- Subtly addresses taboo themes (mental illness, sexual violence + homosexuality)

- Issues often surpressed in mainstream Southern narratives but found expression in Southern Gothic genre.

New Orleans as a Cultural Symbol

- Cultural crossroads where Old South meets modern New America

- City’s vibrant nature contrasts Blanche

- Emphasises her internal conflict + societal displacement

- Its jazz music, diverse population + lively, gritty atmosphere contrasts Blanche’s refined, outdated view

Elia Kazan - Context and Significance of the Production - Method acting

- Encouraged Method Acting + a naturalistic, emotionally charged style of performance, particularly in Brando’s portrayal of Stanley.

- This contrasted the more traditional, theatrical approach seen in later productions like Laurence Olivier’s 1949 London staging.

Elia Kazan - Context and Significance of the Production - Post-War America

- The play resonated with contemporary audiences by exploring themes of societal change, gender dynamics + psychological trauma

- Reflects the uncertainties of post WWII America

Elia Kazan - Realism

Emphasised realism, making the Kowalskis’ apartment feel cramped + oppressive, reinforcing Blanche’s sense of entrapment.

Elia Kazan - Expressionist Lighting

- Used symbolic lighting - particularly in moments where Blanche’s mental state deteriorates.

- E.g the harsh, unfiltered light when Mitch forces Blanche into reality

Elia Kazan - Physicality and Violence

- Brando’s Stanley was more aggressive and animalistic than previous theatrical portrayals of working-class men.

- His interactions with Blanche were filled with tension, foreshadowing the climactic assault in Scene Ten.

Elia Kazan - Sound and Atmosphere

- Used music + street sounds to enhance the play’s psychological tension

- Particularly the recurring use of the Varsouviana polka to symbolize Blanche’s past trauma.

Blanche DuBois - Jessica Tandy

- Delicate and aristocratic, emphasizing Blanche’s fading Southern belle persona.

- Performance highlighted Blanche’s psychological vulnerability + increasing descent into madness.

- Unlike Vivien Leigh’s later film portrayal, which brought a heightened fragility and romanticism, Tandy’s Blanche was more restrained, focusing on dignity even in moments of desperation.

Stanley Kowalski - Marlon Brando

- A groundbreaking portrayal that redefined masculinity on stage.

- His performance was intensely physical and raw, using Method Acting techniques to bring an unprecedented realism to the role.

- Both charismatic and menacing, making his dominance over Blanche even more unsettling. 

- His famous delivery of “STELLA!” became one of the most iconic moments in theatre history.

Stella Kowalski - Kim Hunter

- Balanced warmth and sensuality, portraying a woman torn between her love for Stanley and loyalty to Blanche.

- Her chemistry with Brando emphasized Stella’s conflicted emotions, reinforcing the play’s central power struggles.

Mitch - Karl Malden

- Presented as sincere but ultimately weak, showing how even the more "gentlemanly" figures in the play were shaped by Stanley’s world.

- His rejection of Blanche in Scene Nine was particularly devastating, as it represented the collapse of Blanche’s last hope for security.

Olivier - Staging + Set design

- More stylised than Kazan’s gritty, realistic approach.

- Emphasized Blanche’s psychological deterioration rather than strict naturalism

Olivier - Lighting + atmosphere

- Lighting enhanced Blanche’s mental decline, with shifting shadows + stark contrasts between light + dark reinforcing her disconnection from reality.

Olivier - British theatrical style vs American method acting

Production leaned towards a more structured + traditional British theatrical style, as opposed to the raw emotional intensity brought by method actors like Brando.

Blanche - Vivien Leigh

- Leaned into fragility, appearing more victimised + delicate

- Unlike Jessica Tandy (original broadway production), performance ha heightened theatricality, emphasising Blanche’s artificiality + self deception

- Experiences in classical theatre contributed to a more stylised delivery of William's poetic language, reinforces Blanche as an outsider in Stanley’s New Orleans.

Stanley - Bonar Colleano

- Less brutish + more conventionally masculine, unlike Brando’s raw, animalistic performance

- Shift in characterisation made the conflict with Blanche feel less like a clash of primal force vs vulnerability, more a battle of class + culture

- Some critics noted he lacked Brando’s charisma + menace, altered the power dynamic between Blanche and him.

Jessica Tandy (Broadway) vs Vivien Leigh (London) - Blanche

Tandy = more composed + resistant, controlled + stage oriented

Leigh = fragile + emotionally heightened, cinematic + expressive

Marlon Brando (Broadway) vs. Bonar Colleano (London) - Stanley

Brando = revolutionary, blended raw physicality + emotional depth, made Stanley a force of nature

Colleano = more traditional + restrained, a standard antagonist

Kim Hunter (Broadway) vs Renée Asherson (London) - Stella

Hunter = more emotionally + physically invested in Stanley, felt more like a bridge between Blanche + Stanley

Asherson = more conflicted and reserved, slightly more aligned with Blanche.

Karl Malden (Broadway) vs. Bernard Braden (London) - Mitch

Malden = more emotionally conflicted + humanised, Mitch’s rejection of Blanche had more emotional weight

Braden = more formal + distant, felt more matter of fact.

Bernard Braden - Mitch

- Presented Mitch as a more conventional + polite gentleman.

- Showed less emotional depth, making his rejection of Blanche feel more detached.

- His performance made Mitch feel like a minor character rather than a fully developed foil to Stanley.

Trevor Nunn

- Abandoned American realism, focused on a more dreamlike approach, reflective of Blanche’s mind

- Done through large revolving set, conveyed New Orleans in the 1940s

- Critics felt Stanley’s aggression was underrepresented + his character was overshadowed by Blanche’s changed power dynamic

Benedict Andrews - Stage

- Revolving set (like Nunn)

- Kept the acting space in perpetual motion but had ‘limitations’, hiding facial expressions (Guardian)

- Only stops during the rape (highlights the changing temprements of characters)

- Relentlress movement allows audience to understand disorienting nature of Blanche’s mind

Benedict Andrews - Music

- Incorporated elements of Baranowski’s jazz to modernise Williams’ plastic theatre

Benedict Andrews - Stella

- Play emphasises Stella’s significance, highlights her suffering with inner turmoil due to loyalty to Stanley + Blanche

- For a modern audience, it is often difficult to depict a comprehensible example of an abusive relationship (audience question why she stayed), Kirby’s Stella allowed the audience to understand this through her motives + love for Stanley

Sarah Frankcom - Stage

- Tightly enclosed stage by audience - evokes claustrophobic atmosphere of the apartment - audience can understand how Blanche felt

- Only wall is a transparent partition separating the bathroom - reflects the dissolving boundaries of Blanche’s mind + reality

Sarah Frankcom - Blanche

- In most productions Blanche is fragile, alike to a tragic heroine

- Peake’s Blanche is capable of being as cold + cutting as she is vulnerable

- Only weak aspect is the slight quiver of her hands - captivates her emotional turmoil + ability to hide it.

Sarah Frankcom - Stella

- Brewster portrays her as chirpy + cheerful

- Her optimism supports her turbulent relationship with Stanley

- Minor actions like eye rolls + examples of a rivalry between her + Blanche

- Give audience a glimpse of their shared childhood + resentment towards each other.