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| Tennessee Williams Festival presents heady mix of madness and flesh | Tennessee Williams Festival presents heady mix of madness and flesh |
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| Springtime in New Orleans – a joyful, meteorological sweet spot before the bullying humidity of the summer arrives – is the city’s festival season. Still somewhat groggy from the hedonistic excesses of Mardi Gras and St Patrick’s Day (which lasts a week here), the city culturally elevates itself this week with a somewhat more cerebral celebration. | Springtime in New Orleans – a joyful, meteorological sweet spot before the bullying humidity of the summer arrives – is the city’s festival season. Still somewhat groggy from the hedonistic excesses of Mardi Gras and St Patrick’s Day (which lasts a week here), the city culturally elevates itself this week with a somewhat more cerebral celebration. |
| The 29th Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival began on Wednesday, honouring the life and works of one of the city’s most loved sons. However, this is New Orleans, and literary festivals in this city celebrate all facets of life – the artistic, the culinary and even the visceral complementing the intellectual. | The 29th Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival began on Wednesday, honouring the life and works of one of the city’s most loved sons. However, this is New Orleans, and literary festivals in this city celebrate all facets of life – the artistic, the culinary and even the visceral complementing the intellectual. |
| The festival is eclectic, loosely hung as it is on the undeniable love that Williams had for the Crescent City. He resided at several addresses in and around the historic French Quarter between 1939 and the early 1980s, and there’s many locations that proudly boast about his completing one of his famous plays while staying there. | The festival is eclectic, loosely hung as it is on the undeniable love that Williams had for the Crescent City. He resided at several addresses in and around the historic French Quarter between 1939 and the early 1980s, and there’s many locations that proudly boast about his completing one of his famous plays while staying there. |
| The grand opening brought a lesser-known facet of Williams’ creativity to the fore – 19 of his paintings were displayed at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, serenaded by the legendary singer Allen Toussaint while local celebrity super-chef John Besh served up suitably striking hors-d’oeuvres. | The grand opening brought a lesser-known facet of Williams’ creativity to the fore – 19 of his paintings were displayed at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, serenaded by the legendary singer Allen Toussaint while local celebrity super-chef John Besh served up suitably striking hors-d’oeuvres. |
| New Yorker drama critic John Lahr is one of the more prominent guest speakers over the next few days. Lahr took a decade to write his biography, Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh, and he’ll be discussing the book and the journey he took to complete it in the elegant surroundings of the Monteleone hotel – a favourite haunt of Williams. | |
| Madness and flesh are two themes likely to figure highly on the list when another well-known speaker opens his fabulously filthy mouth. Film director, author and provocateur John Waters wrote the introduction to Williams’ memoirs, published in 2006. The “Pope of Trash” performs a revitalised version of his one-man show This Filthy World and submits himself to interview by fellow author Laura Lippman. | Madness and flesh are two themes likely to figure highly on the list when another well-known speaker opens his fabulously filthy mouth. Film director, author and provocateur John Waters wrote the introduction to Williams’ memoirs, published in 2006. The “Pope of Trash” performs a revitalised version of his one-man show This Filthy World and submits himself to interview by fellow author Laura Lippman. |
| Literary panels abound over the five days, as do staged readings, full productions of Williams’ plays, seminars and walking tours that take in Williams’ former residences. Lesser-known works get the opportunity to stretch their legs – one such production being Hotel Plays, written to be performed in small hotel rooms. The annual writing competitions have become hotly contested affairs, and prizes will be awarded to the winners over the weekend. | Literary panels abound over the five days, as do staged readings, full productions of Williams’ plays, seminars and walking tours that take in Williams’ former residences. Lesser-known works get the opportunity to stretch their legs – one such production being Hotel Plays, written to be performed in small hotel rooms. The annual writing competitions have become hotly contested affairs, and prizes will be awarded to the winners over the weekend. |
| There is a wealth of events that fall within the festival’s schedule that are more to do with the general culture of the city rather than being specifically related to Williams’ life. This year’s 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the federal levee system are remembered in talks such as Writers of the Storm, which looks at journalistic responsibilities during disasters. | There is a wealth of events that fall within the festival’s schedule that are more to do with the general culture of the city rather than being specifically related to Williams’ life. This year’s 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the federal levee system are remembered in talks such as Writers of the Storm, which looks at journalistic responsibilities during disasters. |
| Add to this cookery classes, a premiere of a film adaptation of one of Williams’ short plays, The Palooka (starring local resident and Mad Men star Bryan Batt) and a talk about Jerry Lee Lewis and you get a sense of the esoteric flair of the festival. | Add to this cookery classes, a premiere of a film adaptation of one of Williams’ short plays, The Palooka (starring local resident and Mad Men star Bryan Batt) and a talk about Jerry Lee Lewis and you get a sense of the esoteric flair of the festival. |
| The climax is always satisfyingly dramatic, and only its ridiculousness is taken anything like seriously. The Stanley and Stella Shouting Contest is all about letting loose those primal screams, as people line up to fall to their knees and empty their lungs as they mimic Stanley Kowalski’s immortal cry. In the interests of equality, women can subvert the scene and shout for Stanley. | The climax is always satisfyingly dramatic, and only its ridiculousness is taken anything like seriously. The Stanley and Stella Shouting Contest is all about letting loose those primal screams, as people line up to fall to their knees and empty their lungs as they mimic Stanley Kowalski’s immortal cry. In the interests of equality, women can subvert the scene and shout for Stanley. |
| Theatre, academia, history, filth, discussion, literary competition, food, music and a healthy dose of melodramatic shouting. Yes, that sounds about right for a festival in New Orleans. | Theatre, academia, history, filth, discussion, literary competition, food, music and a healthy dose of melodramatic shouting. Yes, that sounds about right for a festival in New Orleans. |
| The full festival programme can be found here: www.tennesseewilliams.net | The full festival programme can be found here: www.tennesseewilliams.net |