by A.A. Brenner

Directed by Colm Summers

A modernized queer, disabled new play inspired by Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire with no cis white men and one Gentleman Caller who is not a gentleman, Blanche & Stella explores and reimagines the central complex female relationships at the heart of Williams’ play and canon. In this retelling, Blanche DuBois and Stella Kowalski are two only-children and childhood best friends (“sisters”) who end up living together after Blanche goes through a cataclysmic breakup and shows up unannounced on Stella’s doorstep in Washington, D.C. Now adults, the pair must navigate mismatched expectations and their own maladaptive coping mechanisms as they question what to do when the people they love aren’t quite who they appeared to be.

Cast

McLean Peterson – BLANCHE DUBOIS
Carey Blackburn – STELLA KOWALSKI
Rakesh Palisetty – ARMAN SULTAN
A.A. Brener – GENTLEMAN CALLER

Creative Team

Assistant Director Emma Densen
Stage Manager Amy Rauchwerger
Producer Jessica Hirschhorn
Dramaturg Anisa Rose Threlkeld
Assistant Dramaturg & Producer Kelleen Moriarty
Set / Props Designer Karen Loewy Movilla
Lighting Designer Betsy Chester
Sound Designer Liam Bellman-Sharpe
Costume Designer Karen Boyer
Projection Designer Caroline Trewet
Intimacy & Fight Coordinator Leana Gardella

SEE THE FULL 2022 NEW PLAYS FESTIVAL SCHEDULE