Austin Shakespeare's A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE Opens This Week at Long Center

Austin Shakespeare presents the legendary passion of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire at the Rollins Studio Theatre at the Long Center for the Performing Arts, located at 701 West Riverside Drive in Austin at 7:30 pm Thursday-Sunday, November 19 - December 6, 2015.

Considered one of the most powerful plays ever written, A Streetcar Named Desire opened on Broadway and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play has since had successful productions around the world and was made into a now-classic film by Elia Kazan.

Austin Shakespeare Artistic Director Ann Ciccolella, who directs the production says, "We all know that Streetcar packs a wallop of emotion. But we sometimes forget that Tennessee Williams digs deeply into the most intimate and sensitive parts of our souls as men and women."

Set in the French quarter of New Orleans, fading Southern Belle Blanche DuBois comes to stay with her sister Stella, having lost her teaching job and the family plantation home. Stella is married to brutish Stanley Kowalski who later exposes Blanche as a small town prostitute and seducer of young boys to her sole suitor, Mitch. A final, sexual power struggle leads to a dangerous and climactic ending.

New York actress and former Austinite Gwendolyn Kelso returns to play the legendary "Blanche." Kelso received a "Best Acting" award for her portrayal of "Blanche" at The International Fringe Festival for Tennessee Williams' one act draft of Streetcar titled "Interior Panic."

"Stanley" will be played by Andrew Hutcheson, a UT MFA acting graduate who has won both B. Iden Payne and Critic's Table awards in Austin and praised in The New York Times for his Shakespeare, "...Mr. Hutcheson becomes the still, commanding center of the play. With his sonorous voice and beautiful diction...Mr. Hutcheson manages to steal the show."

Amber Quick, last season's Roxanne in Cyrano will return as Stanley's young wife, Stella. Austin Shakespeare favorite Michael Miller will be Mitch, Blanche's suitor. Other cast members include Patrick Schmidt as the doctor and new to Austin Shakespeare: Hannah Rose Barfoot (Eunice), Jason Graf (Steve Hubble), Ethan Santo (Bill Collector), Quinn Lara (Pablo), and Gina Houston (Nurse, Flower Seller).

The creative team includes Set Design by Leslie Turner, Costume Design by Talena Martinez, Light Design by Patrick Anthony, Music Design by Michael McKelvey, Sound Design by Chris Braudt and Graphic Design by Mackenzie Dunn.

Tickets range from $24-42 (student tickets $18) and may be purchased online, www.thelongcenter.org or by calling The Long Center box office (512) 474-5664.

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