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A Streetcar Named Desire is a legendary film released in 1951, during a period of change in America after World War II. Directed in French by Pauline Susini (Un tramway nommé désir), the play runs in Paris, at the Théâtre des Bouffes Parisiens until April 28.
Based on the movie A Streetcar Named Desire, Pauline Susini’s adapted play Un tramway nommé désir, in 2024, was up to the challenge. In 1951, making a movie based on the characters’ sexuality, without showing any explicit scenes was an achievement. The play did it again in 2024, bringing to life lively characters, in a subtle yet raw performance. The emotion is the same as the film’s, in a meticulous scenography, drawing back the past years’ ambiance and the characters’ scenery as close to their fictional reality as could be.
The plot tells the story of a woman who comes a long way, to live with her sister and her sister’s husband. Blanche lost her young husband who committed suicide and, facing PTSD, she became increasingly unstable. She was also haunted by death and almost obsessed with the idea of dying. She delves into a blurry reality as she fails to get her ultimate desire. The theme tackles sexual desire, drinking, death, fantasy, rape and delusion, which makes it as powerful nowadays as it was years back. In fact, stepping back in time, Paramount had in mind to carry the movie to screen. Yet, the project was stopped because it risked censorship. Moral, human and ethical lessons still arise when watching it: how lying harms to the people one loves, the danger of abuse, human relationships and the consequences of connections, and last but not least, staying true to oneself. “Don’t judge a book by its cover” seems to apply to Blanche Dubois, who represents women in society back then but also nowadays.
Tennessee Williams’s text has not aged a bit. A great moment of dramatic theater is highlighted with the play intensity held from start to finish. The actors supported each other and kept up with their roles from the beginning to the end, at the edge of their characters’ logic and madness, on the borderline between reality and illusion. Indeed, “there are no small roles.” The actors’ performance was captivating. As soon as stepped up on stage, one could hear people in the audience whisper “Blanche…” There she was, before their eyes, as famous as she once was. The actress embodied the character so well, with sparks in her eyes, suspensions in her gestures, unspoken words in her language, silence in her voice and striking words in her silence. Thus, Cristiana Reali captivated the audience with her role in a believable and endearing Blanche Dubois. Alysson Paradis, Nicolas Avinée, Lionel Abelanski, Marie-Pierre Nouveau, Tanguy Malaterre and Djibril Pavadé band together in a streetcar of lost illusions, carrying the audience on the wings of a vintage dream that floats on madness through time. It is new scenic space, in a Vaudeville decor, but also another cultural space, a French one, where the characters evolve well. “I can’t stand a naked light bulb, any more than I can a rude remark or a vulgar action,” says Blanche. Here is one of those phrases that remain anchored in one’s mind over the years. Tennessee Williams’s text continues to haunt us, just like his characters and their torments, so close to the whirlwinds of the soul.
Instagram: @mariechristine.tayah
