Teaching A Streetcar Named Desire

Instructions for You

Objective: For a play that's not a musical, music sure plays a substantial role in A Streetcar Named Desire. You could even argue that it fills in for words at times, and Williams includes several references to music, both in the stage directions and within the dialogue of the play. Check out our allusions round-up for a comprehensive list.

It's fine and dandy to be like gee, there's a lot of music in this play, but this stops short of explaining why. What is it about music that can describe the indescribable? How does Williams use it in the play to show us thoughts, feelings, and mental states? Sorting this out is exactly the aim of this activity—it's all about digging into the uses of music in the play.

This is a short activity—it's totally doable in one period—but is best done once you're all finished reading. It's a great chance to update Streetcar by pulling in contemporary music, which will hopefully grab your class's interest, as well as boost their exploration of text and sound and their importance in theater and film.

Materials Needed: Paper and pens; computer with internet access; copies of A Streetcar Named Desire

Step 1: Let's start easy. Ask students to share their favorite sound tracks from films. Staring at a sea of blank faces? Ask students to think of movies in which they found the music particularly important. Suggestions you might throw their way include Almost Famous, Amadeus, and Pitch Perfect.

After you have a good list of films going, it's time to get your students thinking about why music matters in these films. Questions you might pose include:

• How would these movies be different without music?
• Are there any particular moment in these films where music plays an important part? Think: fight scenes, escapes, road trips, and so on.
• Is the music for any of these not a good fit? If yes, how so?

Step 2: Wrap up the discussion and write the following fill-in-the-blank statements on the board:

• Music makes me feel ____________.
• When I listen to __________, I feel _____________.

Have students jot those sentences down in their notebooks, and fill in the blanks.

Now it's time now to bring it back to the text. Since the goal of this exercise is to show students the importance of music in A Streetcar Named Desire, you're going to ask your class to close their eyes and listen. Then you will play a video of "Varsouviana." Afterward, in their notebooks, have students fill in the following statement:

• "Varsouviana" makes me feel _____________.

Now ask students to close their eyes again and play the song "It's Only a Paper Moon." Just like last time, have the students fill in the following statement in their notebooks:

• The song "It's Only a Paper Moon" makes me feel _______________.

Step 3: It's time to go on a musical treasure hunt. Arrange students into groups and ask them to find and list any and all references to music they can find in A Streetcar Named Desire. After they have completed the task, read the following excerpt from our analysis of music in the play:

First of all, if you read your stage directions carefully you'll notice that Williams uses music to establish the mood of many different scenes in Streetcar. It's basically like watching a movie, where the music is fast-paced during a chase scene, tender in a love scene, etc. But we're interested more in the specific songs that are used repeatedly as symbols in the play—starting with the "Varsouviana." Williams mentions the name of this polka in his stage directions, but Blanche, too, gives its name in Scene Nine. This is important, since those watching the play instead of reading it don't have the benefit of Williams's commentary. If he wanted the audience to know the tune, he had to place it in the dialogue of one of his characters.

Now what is this "Varsouviana"? Why haven't we heard of it? Well, it's a polka tune, so unless you're into that you likely wouldn't have encountered this song before. It sounds a bit like merry-go-round music, which you can imagine is eerie to hear in a Gothic-type drama on the stage.

It sets the mood of Blanche being unstable and imagining creepy music that no one else can hear. It also helps when she explains that her husband killed himself while the Varsouviana polka was playing. She can't escape the guilt of feeling like she caused his suicide. She can't escape her husband's death, so she can't escape the music, either.

Now that the students have an example of how and why music is used in the play, ask them to choose two moments in the play that use music and explain in short paragraphs what using music at these particular points in the play achieves.

Step 4: This final step can either be used as in-class assignment or as a homework assignment. Tell students that they will be compiling a modern-day sound track for A Streetcar Named Desire. Ask them to choose at least five contemporary songs that would fit within the world of the play. They'll need to write explanations for why they have chosen each song, using textual evidence from both the play and the songs to support their choice. They should also type up their short paragraphs from Step 3.

Step 5: Did somebody say dance party? Time permitting, give your students a chance to share their playlists—you can even find the songs for them on YouTube if you still have a computer handy. Otherwise, just collect their playlist explanations and short paragraphs, and get ready to tap your toes as you grade them.

Instructions for Your Students

Objective: Ah, music. It seems to have an effect on us, don't you think? There's nothing like turning the music up loud and singing along to get over a breakup or pump yourself up for finals. Based on all the music in A Streetcar Named Desire, it seems like Tennessee Williams would totally agree.

In this activity, you're going to explore the uses of music in the play. You're also going to put together your own mini playlist of songs that could function equally well in it. Cool right? By linking current music to A Streetcar Named Desire, you'll explore the significant relationship between text and sound, and its importance in theater and film.

Step 1: Let's start easy. What are your favorite sound tracks from films? Nothing coming to mind? Well, then think of movies in which you found the music particularly important. There's got to be at least one in which the music really mattered to your viewing experience… Let your mind wander down this musical lane, then chime into the class discussion. And remember: ain't no shame in the Pitch Perfect game.

Step 2: Write the following fill-in-the-blank statements in your notebook:

• Music makes me feel ____________.
• When I listen to __________, I feel _____________.

Got 'em? Great. Now close your eyes and imagine you're listening to your favorite music. Once you're really feeling it, open your eyes and fill in those blanks.

Your teacher is going to share a few songs from the play with you now, so get our your listening ears and enjoy.

Step 3: It's time to go on a musical treasure hunt. Along with your group mates, find and list any and all references to music you can find in A Streetcar Named Desire.

Once you've finished the treasure hunt, read the following excerpt from Shmoop's music analysis:

First of all, if you read your stage directions carefully you'll notice that Williams uses music to establish the mood of many different scenes in Streetcar. It's basically like watching a movie, where the music is fast-paced during a chase scene, tender in a love scene, etc. But we're interested more in the specific songs that are used repeatedly as symbols in the play—starting with the "Varsouviana." Williams mentions the name of this polka in his stage directions, but Blanche, too, gives its name in Scene Nine. This is important, since those watching the play instead of reading it don't have the benefit of Williams's commentary. If he wanted the audience to know the tune, he had to place it in the dialogue of one of his characters.

Now what is this "Varsouviana"? Why haven't we heard of it? Well, it's a polka tune, so unless you're into that you likely wouldn't have encountered this song before. It sounds a bit like merry-go-round music, which you can imagine is eerie to hear in a Gothic-type drama on the stage.

It sets the mood of Blanche being unstable and imagining creepy music that no one else can hear. It also helps when she explains that her husband killed himself while the Varsouviana polka was playing. She can't escape the guilt of feeling like she caused his suicide. She can't escape her husband's death, so she can't escape the music, either.

Now that you have an example of how and why music is used in the play, you're going to choose two moments in the play that use music and explain in short paragraphs what using music at these particular points in the play achieves. Warning: you'll be doing this in your notebook now, but ultimately you'll be typing these paragraphs up to turn in—in other words, don't skimp.

Step 4: Ready to play DJ? Compile a modern-day sound track for A Streetcar Named Desire, choosing at least five contemporary songs that would fit within the world of the play. You'll need to write explanations for why you have chosen each song, using textual evidence from both the play and the songs to support you choice. You should also type up your short paragraphs from Step 3.

Step 5: Did somebody say dance party? Time permitting, you'll have a chance to share your playlist with your class. Otherwise, just turn in your playlist explanation and short paragraphs.