Tennessee Williams St. Louis Receives Whitaker and MHC Grants

Tennessee Williams St. Louis has received the generous support of the W H I T A K E R F O U N D A T I O N for its mainstage production of Suddenly Last Summer to be presented in COCA's Berges Theatre during the 8th Annual Tennessee Williams Festival September 7 - 17. The Whitaker Foundation was established in 1975 by Mrs. Mae Meissner Whitaker in memory of her husband Lyndon and is a private, independent foundation that supports charitable and public purpose projects in the limited geographic area of St. Louis, Missouri.

The Missouri Humanities Council (MHC) has awarded a grant to Tennessee Williams St. Louis in support of the 8th Annual Tennessee Williams Festival Scholars Conference. The MHC is the only statewide agency in Missouri devoted exclusively to humanities education for citizens of all ages. It has served as a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities since 1971.

During the 8th Annual Tennessee Williams Festival, TWStL will offer a series of performance and educational opportunities, inviting the public to discover the profound influence that St. Louis had upon Williams' life and work, and the way that historical events shaped Williams' writing. Educational events are curated to thematically align with performance offerings, and serve to interpret and illuminate the topics raised in Williams' writing.

Educational and interpretive activities are coordinated by Tom Mitchell, Professor of Theater at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and Tennessee Williams Festival Scholar. These include:

• post-show commentaries/Q&A sessions on performances of Suddenly Last Summer
• the Scholars Conference: a series of expert panels open to the public during the festival
• guided walking tours of important local Williams' sites
• the Tennessee Williams Tribute-a reading and discussion of thematically connected selections from Williams plays, letters, stories, and poetry by actors, celebrity guests, and singers, curated with commentary by Tom Mitchell.

For more information about the 8th Annual Tennessee Williams Festival please visit www.twstl.org or email carrie@twstl.org. For more information about the Whitaker Foundation, see thewhitakerfoundation.org and for the Missouri Humanities Council, call (314)781-9660 or (800) 357-0909, or write to the MHC, 415 S. 18th street, Suite 100, St Louis, Missouri 63103-2269.

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