Rob Ashford Will Direct New Orleans Tennessee Williams Tribute

The immersive event will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the literary festival inspired by the Streetcar Named Desire playwright.

March 17, 2026 By Logan Culwell-Block

Rob Ashford will direct a one-night-only Tennessee Williams experience in New Orleans, part of a celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Tennessee Williams and New Orleans Literary Festival. The event, titled We Have Not Long to Love: A Celebration of Tennessee Williams, will be held March 27 at BK House and Gardens in New Orleans' French Quarter.

On hand to perform excerpts from several of Williams' plays will be Michael Cerveris, Christine Ebersole, Marin Ireland, Jennifer Laura Thompson, Ansel Elgort, Froy Gutierrez, Jennifer Nettles, Harriet Harris, Micaela Diamond, and Leslie Castay.

The evening will see guests wandering the historic home in small groups, where they will find immersively staged scenes from Sweet Bird of Youth, Orpheus Descending, and A Streetcar Named Desire. Hors d'oeuvres and cocktails will be served during a short intermission, after which all attendees will visit the venue's courtyard for a finale excerpt from Suddenly Last Summer.

“Tennessee Williams is the patron saint of New Orleans, a city that inspires and intrigues me,” says Ashford in a statement. “We Have Not Long to Love: A Celebration of Tennessee Williams will showcase the themes that Williams so often explored: fear of aging and loss of desire, illusion versus reality, and the shifting power dynamics in relationships. It’s an honor to work with this extraordinary cast on the 40th anniversary of the beloved festival in the city where Williams thrived creatively.”

Tony winner Ashford—best known for his work directing and choreographing musicals like How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying and Promises, Promises—helmed the 2013 Broadway revival of Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

Tickets for the March 27 event, proceeds from which will benefit the Festival, are available at TennesseeWilliams.net.