Lake Park stages 'A Streetcar Named Desire'

Lake Park High School will present the Tennessee Williams drama "A Streetcar Named Desire."

Performances begin at 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 10 to 12, at Lake Park High School, East Campus, 600 S. Medinah Road, Roselle.

Set in New Orleans' French Quarter after World War II, "A Streetcar Named Desire" is the story of Blanche DuBois, a woman desperate to find her place in the world.

Forced to leave her hometown of Laurel, Mississippi, for seducing a 17-year-old boy at the school where she taught English, Blanche goes to stay with her younger sister, Stella, and Stella's husband, Stanley, and tells them she's suffered nervous exhaustion because of financial problems on the family plantation.

Stanley is suspicious of Blanche from the start and their acrimonious relationship catches Stella in the middle. But Stanley and Stella are deeply in love, and Blanche's efforts to come between them only anger Stanley. Blanche sets her sights on Mitch, a card-playing buddy of Stanley's who sees her as beautiful and refined. Yet, rumors of Blanche's past begin to catch up to her.

In Lake Park's production, Allison Ford plays Blanche DuBois, Alex Park is Stanley Kowalski, Emily Reilly takes the role of Stella Kowalski, and Julian Boryszewski is Mitch Mitchell.

The theme for Lake Park's theater season this year is "Find Your Truth: Discover, Uncover, Reveal." "A Streetcar Named Desire," one of America's great dramas, challenges the students to explore themes that are far beyond their personal experience.

Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for non-Lake Park students, free to senior citizens and Lake Park students. Tickets can be purchased at the door. For information, contact lptheatreboxoffice@lphs.org or (630) 295-5313.