If you went to the Boo Cat Club in the fall of 2014 and saw Stairs to the Roof, you have an inkling of what will happen in May at the first St. Louis Tennessee Williams Festival. Producer Carrie Houk’s vision of that early, little-known, and rarely staged Williams play was hailed as “shimmering” by St. Louis Post-Dispatch theater critic Judy Newmark; adding to the magic was the fact that Williams’ earliest works were performed there in the ’30s, when it was the St. Louis Artists’ Guild.
The festival promises to combine the same lush production values and St. Louis history and architecture, plus a little sparkle of stardust. It seems incredible that we’ve never had a Williams festival (count the number of St. Louis references over the stretch of his work, and you’ll make yourself dizzy) but Houk is cut out for the job. She’s had her hands in just about every aspect of theater—actor, director, producer, casting director, acting coach, professor—and is a longtime attendee of the Williams Festival circuit, traveling regularly to New Orleans, Provincetown, and Key West. In the process, she’s built up a network of scholars, directors, and actors who are also devoted to his work; many of them will be coming to St. Louis to participate, including L.A.-based actor Jeremy Lawrence, who’ll perform his critically acclaimed one-man show based on Williams’ life.
Already it is shaping up to be a destination festival. “I knew there was a thirst for his work,” she says, “but honestly, the response has just surpassed my wildest dreams.”
Though Houk wants to touch on all of the arts, the core of the fest, of course, are the plays. “We always want to do the ‘greatest hits,’” she says, “but we also want to introduce new work.” This year, Upstream Theater will perform The Glass Menagerie at the Kranzberg Black Box Theater; a series of one-acts set in St. Louis, dubbed The Rooming House Plays, will be performed at Stockton House. And at The Wednesday Club—where Williams wrote and performed with the Mummers of St. Louis—the Midnight Company will produce his haunting The Two Character Play.
Is it exhausting, pulling all of these moving parts together, especially for a first-year festival? Definitely. But Houk is indefatigable. She’s energized by the response so far—and of course by her dedication to Williams’ work.
“It is essential that this man’s work not be forgotten, not be unknown to the next generation,” she says. “He is our Shakespeare.”
FYI: The festival runs May 11–15; for a full listing of events and ticket info, go to twstl.org.
And Don’t Miss
St. Louis’ Tennessee Williams Festival is a truly multidisciplinary affair, encompassing art shows, readings, and more:
- May 11: Al Hischfeld, Broadway Poet opens at The Dark Room (615 N. Grand). Includes a collection of the St. Louis–born artist’s caricatures of the playwright.
- May 12: From Streetcar to Milk Train: An Evening With Olympia Dukakis. Director David Kaplan, head of the Provincetown Tennessee Williams Festival, interviews the actress about her experiences performing Williams’ work.
- May 13: Ensemble: Williams Family Letters. Williams’ niece Francesca Williams reads from a selection of the playwright’s personal correspondence with his family. Beatnik Jam: From 10 p.m.–midnight, actors, poets, and scholars gather at The Dark Room to read Williams’ work aloud.
- May 14 & 15: Bus Tour: Includes stops such as Williams’ childhood home and his gravesite at Calvary Cemetery.
- May 15: Tennessee Williams 101. A lecture by Washington University theater professor Henry Schvey. Stella Shoutin’ Contest: Participants gather in Strauss Park to do their finest Stanley Kowalski impressions.
