A triumphant jazz ensemble plays us into the opening of Blank Canvas Productions’ production of A Streetcar Named Desire. Watching the first scene unfold it is evident that even without the promised spectacle of lights, costume, and set, Harry Lukakis and Anna Seccombe have managed to craft an elegant allusion of mid-century New Orleans. This is helped by an ensemble of well-crafted performances that aid in highlighting the naturalism of Williams’ text.
But of course, Tennessee Williams’ evocative work is not a straightforward piece of theatrical realism. “Our emphasis is in highlighting the elements of classical theatre,” says co-director Harry Lukakis. “We aim to showcase the ways in which the past, present, and future confront each other in Williams’ work.” Co-director Anna Seccombe adds, “The lights, the set, the costumes… It’s all about seeing the intentional onstage.”
There is certainly little in the production to leave one wondering if a moment was improvised. Lukakis and Seccombe appear to have worked tirelessly with their cast in maintaining a consistent, realistic flow of action. Each beat and gesture feels simultaneously effortless and well rehearsed. One can see such feats of acting ability in particular in Maddy Walker and Jason Imlach, whose performances as Stella and Stanley Kowalski raise the bar for collegiate productions of Streetcar.
The play follows Southern debutante Blanche DuBouis (Mary Higgins) who is visiting her sister, Stella, and brother-in-law, Stanley, in New Orleans after taking a leave of absence from teaching in Mississippi. A cornerstone of American theatre, Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning work of theatre explores the dichotomy of class, sexuality, and mental illness under the umbrella of repressed Southern American society.
While this American raised the occasional eyebrow at a few messy vowels, the actors generally did an outstanding job of maintaining the New Orleans’ ‘yat’ accent and the more distinguishable Southern lilt in the characters of Stella and Blanche.
Certain to be a highlight of the Oxford theatre scene, A Streetcar Named Desire rounds out a great term with its respect for its powerful source material and courage to experiment beyond Williams’ words. This high-caliber production is not to be missed.
‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ will be running Thursday-Sunday of 6th Week at the Keble O’Reilly Theatre
