Chapter 9
Stella is in the kitchen packing Blanche’s dresses and other belongings while a poker game rages among Stanley, Mitch, Steve, and Pablo. Eunice arrives with grapes, and a strained conversation ensues about Blanche’s health and a planned country rest. Blanche, still in a red satin robe, emerges from the bathroom, demanding that her silk bouclé not be crushed and that a seahorse pin and artificial violets be arranged on a jacket. She repeatedly asks for help dressing and for the curtains to be closed, exhibiting increasing hysteria. The “Varsouviana” waltz underscores her agitation.
A Doctor and a Matron appear at the door, summoned by the men’s interrupted game. Eunice informs Stella that someone is calling for Blanche. Blanche, fearing it is the imagined suitor “Shep Huntleigh,” refuses to go out, then reluctantly follows the Doctor and Matron after a frantic exchange about a “lady” accompanying the Doctor. Blanche attempts to pass through the room, pleading with the men not to rise, and is ushered out onto a porch where the Doctor greets her. She realizes the man is not Shep and, in a whisper, tells Stella “That man isn’t Shep Huntleigh.”
Stanley blocks Blanche’s path as she tries to re‑enter the flat; the Matron, together with the Doctor, confronts her. Stanley taunts her about a forgotten lantern; the Matron grabs Blanche’s arm, prompting Blanche to scream, scratch, and attempt to flee. The men rise, Mitch collapses sobbing at the table, and chaos erupts. The Doctor steps forward, speaks gently to Blanche, and instructs the Matron to release her. Blanche, trembling, clings to the Doctor’s arm and delivers the famous line, “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” The Doctor leads her calmly through the portieres and out the front door, while the poker players watch silently.
Stella, on the porch, cries out Blanche’s name and, after Blanche departs, receives a pale‑blue–wrapped infant from Eunice, cradling the child in sobs. Stanley, now on the porch, addresses a distraught Stella with a soothing, intimate tone, kneeling and touching the opening of her blouse, uttering “Now, honey… now, love.” As the “blue piano” music swells, the scene fades. Meanwhile, Mitch remains seated, despondent, and the other men return to their cards. The play ends with Stanley’s ambiguous, lingering presence over Stella’s tears.