Thursday 19 March 2015

SCOTTISH BALLET'S
A Streetcar Named Desire

 I was very excited to receive an invite to Scottish Ballet's award-winning production A Streetcar Named Desire, but I was also, weirdly, a bit nervous. I seem to be the only person in the entire world who hasn't actually ever read A Streetcar Named Desire, or watched the play, or the film, or even (at a push) the Simpsons parody episode.

Would I be able to pick up the story, or would I be lost in a sea of pirouettes and cabrioles? (I am also very, very new to ballet. I had to google those).


I shouldn't have worried. A Streetcar Named Desire is beautiful. Achingly, powerful, you-may-need-to-cry beautiful. I didn't always know exactly what the small details were (I was quite baffled by the dramatic discovery of a piece of paper), but I was surprised by just how well I followed the story. The staging is simple and moody, with flickering light bulbs and surprisingly dramatic crates, and the music is just incredible.

I was lucky enough to get the chance before the show to chat with Luciana Ravizzi, who shares the role of the lead character Blanche with Eve Mutso. It was absolutely fascinating to listen to Luciana talk about her role - particularly the challenges of playing such a raw, emotional character, and how emotionally draining each performance is.



A Streetcar Named Desire is in Edinburgh until Saturday 21st March (book tickets here) and then tours to London, running in Sadler's Wells from Tuesday 31st March to Thursday 2nd April (book here!). Scottish Ballet also have an Under 26 £10 ticket offer if you are lucky enough to be youthful!

I can't recommend this enough - I've been thinking about it all day long. Go and get your culture on.

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