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CLARKSDALE – Following the Delta Literary Tour’s visit to Clarksdale this week, a visitor from Minnesota calls to beg a recipe and comments, “We had such a wonderful time; we are all Southern wannabes and will be back.”
The 40 visitors ranging from Washington D.C. to Chicago, and peppered with celebrities including nationally-renowned artist Bill Dunlap and writers Steve Yarbrough and John Prichard, spent the day immersed in the culture of playwright Tennessee Williams, blues and gospel music, and Southern cuisine.
Emphasizing the influence of Clarksdale on the writings of Williams in a talk at the Cutrer Mansion , scholar Kenneth Holditch told the group, “Home is where you hang your childhood.”
His remarks were reinforced later by a panel of St. George’s Episcopal Church historians discussing church history and the personality of the Rev. Walter Dakin, grandfather of the playwright, who served as church rector for 16 years.
Included in the group were Louise McGee, Marguerite Bouldin, Grace Clark, and Stella Salmon.
Author John Prichard, a Delta native, spoke briefly on his links with Tennessee Williams, and the playwright’s accuracy portraying the ambience of Southerners.
The grand finale was a porch play featuring Oxford actors Alice Walker and Johnny McPhail as Maggie the Cat and Big Daddy from “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.”
The event was sponsored by the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi , organized by Center staff member Jimmy Thomas, a native of Leland, and coordinated with members of Mississippi Delta Tennessee Williams Festival. Visitors also toured Greenwood , Tutwiler, Merigold, Cleveland , Indianola, and Greenville. |
