In May, producers Stephen C. Byrd and Alia M. Jones of Front Row Productions announced that Streetcar would extend its limited engagement through Aug. 19. The multi-ethnic revival will now conclude on its originally scheduled end date of July 22.
A representative for the production told Playbill.com that A Streetcar Named Desire will begin a West End run this fall. Dates of production have not been determined.
Byrd and Front Row Productions also produced the 2008 all-African-American Broadway revival of Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, which later transferred to London (with its Broadway cast) for an Olivier Award-winning run.
Streetcar opened April 22 at the Broadhurst Theatre. Emily Mann (Anna in the Tropics, Miss Witherspoon) directs Tennessee Williams' tense, sexually charged, New Orleans-set classic. Previews began April 3.
The revival earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Costume Design of a Play (Paul Tazewell). The cast is led by Golden Globe nominee Blair Underwood ("Sex in the City," "In Treatment") as Stanley, Nicoel Ari Parker ("Soul Food," "Boogie Nights") as Blanche DuBois and two-time Tony nominee Daphne Rubin-Vega (Rent, Jack Goes Boating, Anna in the Tropics) as Stella. The creative team was granted permission from the Williams estate to drop the last name of Kowalski, so that Stanley's heritage is now African-American rather than Polish.
Also appearing are veteran dancer-choreographer Carmen De Lavallade (Come Sunday, House of Flowers, "Carmen Jones") as Stanley and Stella's Mexican neighbor, Wood Harris ("Above the Rim," "Remember the Titans") as Blanche's suitor Mitch, Tony nominee Amelia Campbell (Waiting in the Wings, Our Country's Good), Aaron Clifton Moten, Jacino Taras Riddick ("White Collar," "Army Wives"), Matthew Saldívar (The Wedding Singer, Grease) and Count Stovall (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Driving Miss Daisy).
The creative team includes scenic designer Eugene Lee, lighting designer Edward Pierce, costume designer Paul Tazewell and sound designer Mark Bennett. Streetcar has choreography by Camille Brown and an original score by Grammy Award-winning jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard.
A Streetcar Named Desire premiered on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre in December 1947, playing 855 performances before closing in December 1949. Directed by Elia Kazan, the original company boasted Jessica Tandy as Blanche, Marlon Brando as Stanley and Kim Hunter as Stella. The most recent Broadway revival — in 2005 at Studio 54 — starred John C. Reilly, the late Natasha Richardson and Amy Ryan. The Sydney Theatre Company staged a heralded, sold-out production at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2009, with Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett as Blanche.
Visit www.Telecharge.com or phone (212) 239-6200. The Broadhurst Theatre is located at 235 West 44th Street.
