Blanche & Stella: A Sequela

by A.A. Brenner

A modernized queer, Disabled new play inspired by Tennessee Williams' A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE with no cis white men and one Gentleman Caller who is not a gentleman, BLANCHE & STELLA explores and reimagines the central complex female relationships at the heart of Williams' play and canon.

In this retelling, Blanche DuBois and Stella Kowalski are two only-children and childhood best friends ("sisters") who end...

A modernized queer, Disabled new play inspired by Tennessee Williams' A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE with no cis white men and one Gentleman Caller who is not a gentleman, BLANCHE & STELLA explores and reimagines the central complex female relationships at the heart of Williams' play and canon.

In this retelling, Blanche DuBois and Stella Kowalski are two only-children and childhood best friends ("sisters") who end up living together after Blanche goes through a cataclysmic breakup and shows up unannounced on Stella's doorstep in Washington, D.C. Now adults, the pair must navigate mismatched expectations and their own maladaptive coping mechanisms as they question what to do when the people they love aren't quite who they appeared to be.

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Blanche & Stella: A Sequela

Recommended by

  • Dani Stoller: Blanche & Stella: A Sequela by A.A. Brenner
    “

    This. Play. Holy cr*p this play! I was so incredibly surprised, excited, heartbroken, and put back together again. I am just...the level of creativity here is off the charts. You should 1000% read this play. And then read it again to pick up on all the stuff you missed.

    This. Play. Holy cr*p this play! I was so incredibly surprised, excited, heartbroken, and put back together again. I am just...the level of creativity here is off the charts. You should 1000% read this play. And then read it again to pick up on all the stuff you missed.

    ”
  • Dave Osmundsen: Blanche & Stella: A Sequela by A.A. Brenner
    “

    A thoroughly entertaining and devastating play that works on multiple levels. There is much overlap and conversing with Tennessee Williams’ seminal classic. However, A.A. Brenner has created unique, compelling characters here that stand on their own apart from “Streetcar.” More importantly, this play explores with keen insight the impacts of visible and invisibility on our lives without the characters being solely defined by their disability—they are rich, flawed, and complex human beings with the desire to be seen for who they are. The beauty of this play is that it gives them that space.

    A thoroughly entertaining and devastating play that works on multiple levels. There is much overlap and conversing with Tennessee Williams’ seminal classic. However, A.A. Brenner has created unique, compelling characters here that stand on their own apart from “Streetcar.” More importantly, this play explores with keen insight the impacts of visible and invisibility on our lives without the characters being solely defined by their disability—they are rich, flawed, and complex human beings with the desire to be seen for who they are. The beauty of this play is that it gives them that space.

    ”
  • Riley Elton McCarthy: Blanche & Stella: A Sequela by A.A. Brenner
    “

    Oh gosh, where to begin? First off, the choice to call this a "sequela", or "an aftereffect of a disease, condition, or injury", or "a secondary result"... just hits every single beat of this play all the way through. This play is not just about chosen sisters, it is a SISTER play to Streetcar down to the fiber of its being while being irrevocably original, unique, and bitingly painful. And that ending! I'm going to be thinking about this play for a while. How badly I want to see it staged...

    Oh gosh, where to begin? First off, the choice to call this a "sequela", or "an aftereffect of a disease, condition, or injury", or "a secondary result"... just hits every single beat of this play all the way through. This play is not just about chosen sisters, it is a SISTER play to Streetcar down to the fiber of its being while being irrevocably original, unique, and bitingly painful. And that ending! I'm going to be thinking about this play for a while. How badly I want to see it staged...

    ”
View all 4 recommendations

Character Information

Please cast an actor with an "invisible" Disability—and/or lived experience with anxiety—as Stella.

Please cast a transmasculine / nonbinary masculine-of-center person with multiple marginalized identities as The Gentleman Caller. Ideally, one would cast an actor who is both transmasculine and physically Disabled. Should this not be the case for your specific production, please adapt the lines on page 90 as needed. Additionally, this Gentleman Caller will be referred to in the script with he/him pronouns, but could easily use they/them; feel free to accommodate the script as necessary to the pronouns of the actor playing the role.
  • Blanche DuBois
    White. A trust-fund baby who lost it all. Mother died when she was very young and was raised by an absent, yet rich, father. Uses charm and attraction to establish her identity, give her life meaning, and mask her deep chasm of internal emptiness. In other words: a shape-shifter.
    Late 20s
    White
    Cis female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female,
      Non-binary
  • Stella Kowalski
    Light or white. Blanche's childhood best friend. A deeply closeted Military brat "married" to her job. Hardworking, sweet, empathetic, and repressed. Believes her goal in life is to make others happy—even at the expense of her own health and wellbeing. Secretly loves poetry and dance.
    Late 20s
    White
    Cis female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Female,
      Non-binary
  • Arman Sultan
    Pakistani-American. Student at Georgetown Law. Cerebral, sensitive, but also a bro; very much identifies as a "Nice Guy." From Maryland; parents are from Pakistan.
    Late 20s/Early 30s
    Pakistani-American
    Cis male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      South Asian or South Asian American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Male,
      Non-binary
  • The Gentleman Caller
    Moderately successful novelist and minor celebrity. Cocky, confident, charming, but deeply sensitive underneath. Surrounds himself with beautiful women in order to mask his own internal insecurity.
    Late 20s/Early 30s
    Any
    transmasculine,
    Nonbinary
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Male,
      Non-binary
  • Officer I
    Any Age
    Any
    Male
  • Officer II
    Any Age
    Any
    Female

Development History

  • Reading, Breaking the Binary Theatre, 2023
  • Reading, The Lark, 2021

Production History

  • University, Columbia University School of the Arts, 2022

Awards

  • The Leah
    Leah Ryan Foundation
    Honorable Mention
    2022
  • Roundabout@Columbia New Play Reading Series
    Roundabout Theatre Company
    Finalist
    2021