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 TM
Something to Shout About
Tennessee Williams/New
Orleans Literary Festival
Celebrates Strong Writing – and Sound Lungs
By Angela Wibking
 The
Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival is the only cultural event
I know of that ends in a shouting match. The finale of this 4-day literary
event is the Stanley & Stella Shouting Contest – or the Stell-Off, as it is
commonly called. Inspired by the scene in Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar
Named Desire in which the brutish but love-torn Stanley Kowalski bellows
his wife Stella’s name outside her window, the contest offers participants a
chance to out shout each other in their best Marlon Brando (the original
Stanley on Broadway and in film) fashion.
As the sun sets on Jackson Square, a crowd of onlookers
gathers around the 25 contestants standing beneath the wrought iron
balconies of the Pontalba Apartments. The shouters direct their efforts at
two local actors attired as Stella and Stanley who are poised on the balcony
above. This year’s celebrity judges – film critic Rex Reed, actor Richard
Thomas, actress Patricia Neal and Dakin Williams, Tennessee’s younger
brother – also scrutinize the contestants’ efforts from one of the
balconies. While there are a few female entrants (who shout out for
Stanley), there are many more aspiring Brandos shouting for Stella. One by
one they give it their best shot – or shout, as it were. They fall on their
knees, tear their t-shirts and douse themselves with water to simulate
Stanley’s sweat-soaked appeal. In the end five finalists are selected and we
all troupe one block to Le Petit Theatre, the festival’s headquarters, for
one last shout.
 There,
on stage, the five finalists go at it again, a few with such abandon that I
fear for the health of their internal organs. While the judges deliberate,
the emcee asks Dakin Williams to say a few words. Rather than give the usual
“wasn’t the festival wonderful this year” speech, Williams simply rises from
his seat in the front row, leans on the edge of the stage and delivers the
final speech from his late brother’s beloved The Glass Menagerie.
It’s a magic moment that nearly brings a tear to my eye and a well-deserved
round of applause from the packed house.
After the trophies are handed out, everyone in the
theater is invited to share in the large birthday cake -- Tennessee
Williams’ birthday is just days away on March 26 -- as the festival finally
comes to an end.
The Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival is
much more that a shouting contest, of course. It also offers in-depth
writing workshops with best-selling authors like Rick Bragg, Melissa Bank
and Roy Blount, Jr. and fascinating panel discussions with noted writers on
everything from historical fiction to Southern stereotypes in literature.
It’s also the only literary event that I know of that has a strong
performance element: Two full-length Williams plays are staged during the
festival as well as several one-acts and a poetry slam. Performance
highlights this year included Richard Thomas in A Distant Country Called
Youth, based on a new volume of Williams’ letters published last year,
and New Orleans-based actress Francine Segal (currently onscreen in
Monster’s Ball) starring in Sweet Bird of Youth. Patricia Neal
also wowed the audience at the opening night gala with her reading from
Williams’ seldom-performed Portrait of a Madonna.
 As
if all that weren’t enough, there are also film screenings, walking tours of
William’ favorite spots in the French Quarter, book signings and sales in
the theater lobby and musical events featuring legends like Allen Toussaint.
This being New Orleans, there’s also a food event called “Cooks and Books.”
This delectable event unfolds in the ballroom of the Omni Royal Orleans
Hotel a few blocks from the theater and offers foodies the chance to meet
some of the city’s great chefs and sample some of their best dishes.
Highlights this year included pork grillades and goat cheese grits from the
Palace Café, bananas foster from Brennan’s, duck and andouille etouffee from
Upperline, beans and greens from Herbsaint and all manner of delicious
desserts, plus Southern Comfort punch and regional wines from Ponchartrain
Vineyards. Besides gaining a few pounds, I also picked up a purse full of
samples of Elmer’s chocolate Easter eggs and Bruce’s Sweet Potato Pancake
Mix, as well as recipes. An array of New Orleans cookbooks are also sold at
the event by Maple Street Book Shop, the city’s top independent bookseller.
The 17th annual Tennessee Williams/New
Orleans Literary Festival is scheduled for March 26-30, 2003. Considering
the festival’s growing popularity and the fact that it coincides with spring
break for many area schools, it’s wise to book a hotel room and make plans
to attend the 2003 event well in advance. Then you’ll have something to
shout about, too.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Tennessee Williams/New Orleans Literary Festival
938 Lafayette Street, Suite 328
New Orleans, LA 70113
Ph: 504-581-1144
E-mail:
info@tennesseewilliams.net
Web site:
http://www.tennesseewilliams.net
Photos by Virgil Fox
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