Jessica Tandy on "Streetcar": The Worst Sort of Marriage

Interview with Jessica Tandy

Conducted by James Grissom

[Elia] Kazan had us lined up, as if for a ritual, a procession, and, of course, it was the execution of Blanche. Perfectly arrayed, lined up, a beautiful composition for a brutal conclusion. I was a bride being led to the worst sort of marriage: Blanche to her madness. And lost forever. It tore me up every night, every performance, and Tennessee knew this, and I can't tell you how pleased I was to look in the wings at my exit and see him there, beaming, arms wide. He had taken the same walk in the writing, and he was there for me in the playing.

©  2015  James Grissom