Tennessee Williams and New Orleans Literary Festival Names Taylor Bradley Publicist

Taylor Bradley has been named publicist for the Tennessee Williams and New Orleans Literary Festival, Louisiana’s largest literary and theatrical festival. The fest, now in its 36th year, has featured big names in the theater world as past guest speakers, including John Patrick Shanley, Alan Cumming, Betty Buckley, John Goodman and Patricia Clarkson.

Bradley, a writer and event coordinator, will work alongside the festival’s managing director, Tracy Cunningham, and executive director, Paul J. Willis, to promote the festival to a larger audience. She has worked with the festival in other roles since 2019, including box office manager. She produced “The Stella Shout Heard ‘Round the World” for the virtual festival earlier this year. It was a virtual version of the famous shouting match hosted each year by the festival in the French Quarter.

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“New Orleans is this magnetic place; music fills every alleyway of the French Quarter and there’s a character perched on every barstool. The Big Easy was built on storytelling. TWFest is a celebration of theater and literature in the heart of this city; a respite filled with exquisite food and cocktails, and the soft, constant rattle of the streetcars. A designated space for people from all over the country to gather and remember why they fell in love with the arts,” says Bradley.

Bradley, originally from Los Angeles, has been a press guide for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and has worked for top executives at HBO, CBS, Disney and STX Entertainment. She graduated from the University of Iowa with a bachelor’s in theater arts and founded nonprofit 48 Hours Theatre shortly after graduation.

“We’re excited to have Taylor join our team and bring her skills and talents to this position. She not only has the experience and expertise needed for this role, but she is also familiar with the world of nonprofit arts organizations,” says Cunningham. “Taylor keenly understands the power of the written word. In times like these, literature and theater are irreplaceable tools for coping with challenging times. Taylor has been an asset for several years working directly with our patrons, and now she can really use her creativity and connections as our publicist.”

The TWFest hosts panels, guest interviews, writing workshops, theatrical performances, music events, literary walking tours and other events in the French Quarter each March. Next year’s festival will run March 23-27.

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