Tennessee Williams Key West Festival Returns this March with an Array of Programs Devoted to Renowned Playwright

The Tennessee Williams Museum and the Key West Art & Historical Society are hosting a series of arts and cultural events as part of the annual Tennessee Williams Key West Festival beginning next month. For a full list of festival events, visit www.twfest.org. (Photo Credit: Lawson Little).

The Tennessee Williams Museum and the Key West Art & Historical Society are hosting a series of arts and cultural events as part of the annual Tennessee Williams Key West Festival beginning next month. For a full list of festival events, visit www.twfest.org. (Photo Credit: Key West Art & Historical Society, David Wolkowsky Collection).

February 4, 2025 – (KEY WEST, FL).  Key West Art & Historical Society’s month-long Tennessee Williams Key West Festival, which remembers the Pulitzer-prize winning literary icon with an array of arts and cultural events, begins next month.  Williams, who first visited the island in 1941, called Key West “home” for over thirty years after he bought a quaint clapboard house on Duncan Street.  This year’s festival theme is Williams’ iconic work, “A Streetcar Named Desire”, the story of a delicate Southern belle named Blanche DuBois who is forced to confront the harsh realities of life when she moves in with her sister and brother-in-law in New Orleans.

Events during the festival include “A Streetcar Named Desire” themed fundraiser at the home of Tennessee Williams Museum founders Dennis Beaver and Bert Whitt on March 2.  Attendees will be treated to jazz music, an open bar, and heavily passed canapes.  Tickets are available through www.twfest.org.

Every Monday during the month of March, from 6:30 p.m., the Tennessee Williams Monday Night Classic Film Series will be screened at the Tropic Cinema, 416 Eaton Street.  Films include “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” “The Eccentricities of a Nightingale,” “The Rose Tattoo,” and “Sweet Bird of Youth.”  There will also be a free outdoor screening of “A Streetcar Named Desire,” on March 6 in front of the Tropic Cinema.  Film tickets are available exclusively at Tropic Cinema or www.tropiccinema.com.

Beaver will also host a series of curator tours at the Tennessee Williams Museum, each with a special theme.  He will share highlights of the filming of “The Rose Tattoo” and “A Streetcar Named Desire” and provide a general overview of Williams’ life in Key West.  Tickets are available through www.twfest.org.

On Saturday, March 15, at 5:00 p.m., local entertainers Bobby Nesbitt and Carmen Rodriguez will perform “The Tennessee Williams Songbook Part II: Songs of an Era” at the Key West Woman’s Club at 319 Duval Street.  Music inspired by Tennessee’s time in Key West and New Orleans, his award-winning plays, and popular songs during key moments in his life will fill the dining room of the historic home.  The program will have special references to “A Streetcar Named Desire,” and Bobby’s personal recollections of Tennessee Williams in Key West.  Tickets are available through www.twfest.org.

Friday, March 21 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Unity Table at Williams Hall will offer an evening of New Orleans cuisine with an exquisite four-course dinner by Chef Martha Hubbard followed by a reading of two of Williams’ short stories organized by Fringe Theater entitled “The Men of Tennessee Williams”.  Tickets are available through Williams Hall or www.williamshall.org.

Culminating the monthlong festival, the public is invited to a party and award ceremony at the Tennessee Williams Museum celebrating what would have been Williams’ 114th birthday on March 26 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.  The evening, which is free to attend, will include contest award presentations, light snacks, bubbly beverages, and birthday cake.

Visit www.twfest.org for the full schedule of events and advanced ticket purchases.  You can also contact Cori Convertito at [email protected] or 305-295-6616 x507.  The Tennessee Williams Museum, at 513 Truman Avenue, is open every day for self-guided tours from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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