The Tennessee Williams Festival to celebrate its 39th year in New Orleans
Tina Howell • March 11, 2025
Tennessee Williams and New Orleans Literary Festival will celebrate its 39th year on March 26th - 30th in the historic French Quarter of New Orleans.
With over 60 events in five days, the Tennessee Williams Festival brings award-winning writers, poets, historians, scholars, journalists, actors, musicians, and cultural experts together to present five days of literary revelry in New Orleans. Thousands of book and theatre lovers come to New Orleans from all over the country and abroad for their writer's craft sessions, literary panels, theatre events, author interviews, literary walking tours, culinary and cocktail events, music events as well as their incredible Stella Shouting Contest. The contest is a fan favorite in which contestants show off their best rendition of Stanley Kowalski’s big scene from “A Streetcar Named Desire.” The contest will feature New Orleans own Bryan Batt as emcee and Beth Bartley d’Amour and Todd d’Amour as Stella and Stanley. This event is also a fundraiser for the New Orleans Family Justice Center (NOFJC), a network of agencies assisting anyone affected by domestic violence.
The Tennessee Williams Festival’s mission is threefold: to serve the community through educational, theatrical, literary, and musical programs; to nurture, support, and showcase regional, national and international writers, actors, musicians, and other artists; to honor the creative genius of Tennessee Williams, who considered this city his spiritual home.
This year's festival lineup will include over 50 New Orleans writers and over 100 speakers including Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Cunningham and New York Times best-selling author Gillian Flynn, as well as Maureen Corrigan, Laura Lippman, Fatima Shaik, Yuri Herrera, Kalamu ya Salaam, Megan Abbott, KB Brookins, Chin-Sun Lee, Karisma Price, E. M. Tran, Miles Harvey, Jewelle Gomez, Alex Jennings, Mari Kornhauser, Joan Larkin, Bernice L. McFadden, Timothy Schaffert, and more.
“We are looking forward to another great weekend of literary and performance events,” said Paul J. Willis, executive director. “We are especially excited about the addition of the Pinckley Prize panels, plus an expanded schedule of our Last Bohemia events celebrating New Orleans culture. As always, we have many New Orleans writers participating in our festival because they are, after all, what makes this city such a vibrant literary center.”
The festival will also include numerous cultural and theatrical events celebrating the Bohemian nature of New Orleans. The Last Bohemia series will include Mink at the Monteleone, with Mink Stole, Harry Mayronne, and Dr. Sick; a soirée at the Toulouse Theatre featuring Tim Murray Is WITCHES!, a musical comedy fresh from a sold-out award-winning run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival; a culinary and cocktail event with Chef Eric Cook at his restaurant, Saint John; A Drag Brunch Named Desire with Poppy Tooker at Dickie Brennan’s Tableau; a South Louisiana culinary event with music at Mister Gregory’s Shrimp Boil Cabaret; a music series featuring Layla Musselwhite, the Slick Skillet Serenaders, and Alexis and the Sanity; and a four-course Romani culinary event with music and tea leaf readings.
For the TWF's full schedule and tickets, please visit:
https://tennesseewilliams.net/festival-information/
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