Writers flock to New Orleans

Guide from Southern Rep in '40s attire, pointing out Stanley's house

As almost everyone knows, Tennessee Williams lived a bohemian life in New Orleans where he wrote "A Streetcar Named Desire," the steamy story immortalized as both play and film, starring Marlon Brando and Vivian Leigh. Who played Stella? Who knows.

In any case, every year, New Orleans celebrates this event with a weekend of literary events. The festival usually passes me right by, but for one reason or another, I connected with a local writer who was presenting and I decided to attend a couple of the lectures and perhaps pick up a few tips.

I heard a panel of authors share their experiences writing memoirs and was among 100 or so wannabe writers who listened to Amy Hempel talk about short story writing in standing room only.

Friday night, I attended a fabulous performance of "A Streetcar Named Desire" staged in a warehouse that was once a rum factory on Elysian Fields and took a walking tour of the neighborhood where the story was set. We saw the building where the Kowalskis would have lived, which was nowhere near the nightclubs, the Three Deuces bar and the place where they would have purchased their liquor - an essential element. Only United Hardware Story remains - in business since the 1940s.

Williams took a bit of literary license with the details. Blanche would never have found her sister's home had she taken the directions Williams suggested - the streetcar named Desire to Cemeteries and transfer to Elysian Fields, her final resting place.

Southern Rep put a slightly different spin on the story and new interpretation of the characters, but things still turned out badly for Blanche.

Tennessee Williams alive in New Orleans

Stanley look-alike after losing the shouting contest, but still smiling

Preeminent American playwright, Tennessee Williams, who died in 1983 at age 71, lives on in New Orleans, his adopted city, which annually celebrates his works with a five-day Tennessee Williams Festival.

Performances, discussions, walking tours, parties and an opening night gala are some of the events. An all-access festival pass for full emersion costs $500. Most famous for penning "The Glass Menagerie" and "A Streetcar Named Desire," based in the City that Care Forgot, Williams is also esteemed for his flamboyant lifestyle, so in keeping with New Orleans.

This year marks the 25th festival, 100th anniversary of the playwright's birth and the death of the "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," Elizabeth Taylor. Taylor was central to Saturday's panel discussion, "Tennessee Williams and Company: His Essential Actors."

Sunday, however, dozens of contenders vied publicly for the top prize in Jackson Square during the annual "Stella" shouting contest.

From the Times-Picayune...
A popular highlight of the Tennessee Williams Festival has become the annual "Stella!" shouting contest in Jackson Square. Inspired by the iconic scene from Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire," men and women gather each year to compete by calling for Stella or Stanley who oversee the festivities on a nearby balcony.

This year, contestants pushed the envelope with some creative takes on the classic scene. Second-place winner Greg Saurage of Folsom shouted with the help of his wife and children, all in white T-shirts. Nari Tomassetti of New Orleans donned men's clothes and facial hair and shouted until a "police officer" carried her away; Tomassetti carried away third place.

The winner this year, however, featured a piercing cry by Elena Passarello of Grand Rapids, Mich., who decided to defy gender expectations and call to Stella instead of Stanley. Passarello left with a trophy, a dinner cruise on the Mississippi, bowling passes from Rock-N-Bowl, and a gift pack from Belladonna Day Spa.

Contest winner

On the balcony this year, festival President Janet Duval played the contestant's Stella while Matt Payne stood as Stanley. Contest judges included actress Shirley Knight and "The Young and the Restless" star Christian LeBlanc. Regions Bank sponsored the contest.

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