A Streetcar Named Desire
Phone: 800-838-3006
Price: $10-$19
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Polarity Ensemble Theatre
- Wicker Park/Bucktown Josephinum Academy, 1500 N. Bell Ave.
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800-838-3006
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(based on 12 user reviews)
Showing 1-5 of 5
Brilliant take on the classic. I really enjoyed it more than any other Streetcar I've seen before. And it felt like I was living in the same house (not that that is recommended.)
Acting! The three leads were pitch perfect with the melodrama that is Tennesee Williams' masterpiece. It remains a play that is a character study, but with a moving plot. It was entertaining, more than I remember from past productions of 'Streetcar.' And loved the rockin' set! Definitely should be caught soon before it closes. All Polarity's shows surprise me.
This was a powerful production of a powerful play with a brilliant performance by Laura Sturm as Blanche (much more insightful and intense and less stereotyped than Vivian Leigh in the film version). All performances were strongly fleshed out by the actors. Noticed that tickets to the Cate Blanchett production in DC are being scalped for up to $600 per seat which seems ironic and preposterous since you can see right here in Chicago a version that may well be superior to that highly touted and more than likely overhyped version for less than $20. Polarity just seems to get better and better. Check them out.
Dear Mustard: To compare Laura Sturm's OK portrayal of Blanche to Vivien (not Vivian) Leigh's terrifying, heartbreaking performance in the movie shows a shocking amount of ignorance. You're entitled to your opinion, no matter how off the mark it is. But consider that Leigh (under the direction of the great Elia Kazan, who had directed Jessica Tandy in the role in the Broadway premiere) drew not on "stereotype" but on her own tragic battle with mental illness in her performance onscreen (mental illness that drove her to the same kind of sexual promiscuity that Blanche has notoriously engaged in before the play's action begins.
I also find it interesting that none of the comments above (presumably posted by friends of Polarity Ensemble) refer to the stunning Steppenwolf production of a decade or so ago, starring the brilliant Laila Robins and Gary Sinise; or to the solid storefront productions offered in years past by Raven, Shattered Globe, and the Black Ensemble (an all black version starring Jackie Taylor). Ignorance is bliss.
Intelligent... and beautifully executed. The best production I have ever seen in the U.S. Congratulations to all of you! Life is fabulous and art makes it possible for us to see it!
You filled me with magic and beauty!
Thank you.
Ewa Adamska
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