STREETCAR TO A NEW ORLEANS NIGHT
PLAY SHOWING THROUGH JUNE 19 AT PORTLAND CENTER STAGE
BY ANDREW KOC Z I AN
C o n s id e r e d by som e to be a quintessential piece of
d ra m a tic A m e rica n lite ra tu re , T e n n e sse e W illiam s
alludes to a dismal connection between fantasy and
reality in the play “ A Streetcar Named Desire.”
D irected b y C h ris C o le m a n , th is e m o tio n a l roller
coaster plays at Portland Center Stage through June
19. Unlike the classic depiction o f Stanley Kowalski as
played by Marlon Brando on screen, Colem an put his
own creative spin on th is classic, w ith a role-reversal
for th e entire cast. T he characters that were w hite in the
original play were cast as black actors for this production
and v isa-v e rsa.
I was completely immersed
within the drama that was
unfolding before m y eyes.
U p o n s ittin g dow n in th e th e a te r I w as in s ta n tly
transported in to a New O rlean s neighborhood in the
1940s. Featuring a two sto ry -set th at stays true to the
original play, the chaotic night life o f the B ig Easy shines
w ith v alian t color.
For those o f you w ho aren’t fam iliar w ith th is play, it
tells the tale o f Blanche DuBois, a rapidly agin g, chronic
liar w ho suffers fro m an addiction to the b o ttle. A fter
experiencing a traum atic even t, B lanche loses control
o f her life and spirals out o f control.
B la n c h e lan d s h e r s e lf on th e p u ll-o u t bed o f h er
sis te r’ s one room h o u se an d th e in h a b ita n ts o f th e
area, a .k .a her sister’ s husband Stan ley and h is rowdy
card -p layin g drinking buddies. B lanche is in com plete
and u tte r cu ltu re sh o ck as sh e deals w ith th e h arsh
reality o f her life.
“ A Streetcar Nam ed D esire” happens to be one o f m y
absolu te favo rite p lay s, an d th is produ ction d o esn ’ t
disappoint.
The actin g w as ph en om enal to say the least.
I w as co m p letely im m ersed w ith in the dram a th at
w as u n fo ld in g before m y ey es. T h e raw in te n sity o f
the interactions betw een Stan ley, played by Dem etrius
G ro sse, S te lla , played b y K risten A d ele and B la n ch e,
played by Deidrie H en ry, were spectacular.
A fte r th e first h a lf o f th e p erfo rm an ce, w h ich w as
an en tertain in g 90 m in u tes, the audience was clearly
satisfied w ith the showing. A s I walked out o f the theater
I heard m any attendants talking about how amazed they
were w ith the actin g perform ance. And righ tfu lly so.
The second h alf o f the show is an additional 50 minutes
and well worth every m inute. I enjoyed this performance
very m u ch . From the costu m es, to the realistic set and
the phenom enal acting, to the subtle nuances Colem an
adds to W illiam s’ work o f art, this play is a m ust see.
Both the Saturday n igh t perform ance and the Sunday
n ig h t perform ance were com pletely fu ll w ith view ers
o f all ages, although this play does feature som e adult
scenes and th em es. The only negative encounter I had
w h ile atten d in g th is play had n o th in g to do w ith the
p e rfo rm a n c e , b u t rath er e v e ry th in g to do w ith th e
incredibly sm elly o ld -m a n sittin g next to m e.
N orm ally th is type o f th in g w ouldn’ t bother m e, in
fa ct, I love old peop le, but th is one in particular had
a certain pungent arom a that was so strong I cou ld n ’ t
help m yself but wonder w hat could possibly be creating
th is fou l sten ch .
O n top o f th a t, h is w ife h ap p en ed to doze o ff 20
m in u tes into the first act. Sh e also happened to be a
snorer w hich was distracting as w ell.
A l l - i n - a l l i t ’ s an a b so lu te ly fa n ta s tic p lay an d I
h ig h ly recom m end seein g it w hile you can . For m ore
inform ation visit: w w w .pcs.org.
photos contributed by Patrick Weishampel/blankeye.tv.
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