A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams

A Streetcar Named Desire, written by Tennessee Williams in 1947, has been called the best play written by an American. The setting of the play, New Orleans, creates a blended mood of decadence, nostalgia, and sensuality. The plot of the play comes about through the conflict between a man and his sister-in-law who comes to live at his house with he and his wife. Stanley and Blanche immediately capture the attention of the audience through Williams' portrayal of the intensely strong willed characters.

The Play takes place in a two-story apartment in the heart of New Orleans. Eunice lives on the top apartment and Stella and Stanley live on the bottom apartment. The set has a classic Creole ambiance. The props in the play as with the rest of the costumes, and set are based on pieces from the 1940’s. The props were very realistic, and very durable due to the fact that they had to stand up to Stanley’s outburst. The props were very ordinary to show the humble life of Stanley and Stella in 1940’s New Orleans.

The costumes in the play reflected the plot of the play and gave insight into the characters that wore them. Stella and Stanley had simple costumes to reflect their simple impoverished life. Blanche outfits reflected her southern bell attitude, and set her apart from the rest of the characters so you could focus in on her. It showed that she like the best and would do anything for it.

The lighting set the mood for the play. In key scenes the lighting added another dimension to show the conflict and hardship in the story.