A Streetcar Named Desire: Visual, Aural and Spatial

Streetcar Named Desire: Visual, Aural and Spatial

The sound for ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ is effective but this could

be built upon to improve it and create a more intense atmosphere. The

stage directions do state when sound should be used, they usually

state the piece of music and the way in which it should be played, for

example “Blue piano and the hot trumpet sound louder”. I think that if

an amalgamation of types of music such as; instrumental music,

recorded sounds and vocal pieces. This would provide a range of sounds

and would be more interesting for the audience. More sound could be

used to reflect the action taking place in the play, an example being

when, in Scene Ten, when Blanche is trying to get hold of Shep

Huntleigh and is getting more and more distressed this would be an

appropriate time for some fast paced music to enhance her panic.

The space on the stage could have been used a lot more effectively.

The actors could use the whole of the stage, split certain parts of it

up to represent different rooms and scenes, also the changing of space

to create dramatic effect. A good example of a use of this changing

space is in Scene Ten before Blanche gets raped by Stanley, the scene

could start with the space room sized and then as he becomes more

dominating over her it shrinks to show how trapped she feels.

The scenery in the play needs to be relevant to the era and

surroundings of New Orleans, realistic enough so that the audience

know where they are and are interesting but not so much that it takes

the focus of the play away from the actors, the scenery should be life

like, for example the flat, if it is flat like then the audience can

relate with the characters and it can make it feel more real.

The era of the play is also set by the costume that the actors wear to

suggest the time and conditions that the characters live in, the

costumes should also dictate the class of the people in the play as

there are clear divides. For example Blanche would wear long frilly

summer dresses to show that she is still living in the past and wears

clothes that draw attention to herself and most importantly, make her

look attractive. Blanche’s make up would be highlighted to show her

vanity but also to give the appearance that she is younger than she

is. The scenery would show to the audience exactly what it is that she