A Streetcar Named Desire Lesson Plan

A FEMA Trailer Named Desire

Kind of Activity:

creative writing

Objective:

Adapting a timeless drama to modern times

Structure:

Is the play timeless and universal, or is it so specific to its setting that it would be limited if you took it out of 1930s New Orleans? See what happens if you try to "update" it for 2000s New Orleans. (Remember how the Simpsons parody turned out.)

Not very long ago, a one-man Off-Broadway play was titled "Blanche Survives Katrina in a FEMA Trailer Named Desire." Have your students steal this concept and imagine what would be different in this version.

Students might not know about Hurricane Katrina's effects on the...