Gambit Digital Edition: December 4, 2023

December 4-10 2023 Volume 44 Number 49

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BY AMANDA MCELFRESH, AMCELFRESH@THEADVOCATE.COM This article is brought to you by Audubon Nature Institute.

Among the animals at Audubon Zoo, the orangutans are perhaps some of the most engaging when it comes to interacting with each other, visitors and staff. Seven Sumatran orangutans live at the zoo, ranging in age from two years old to 34 years old, and including both males and females. Over time, their caretakers have learned that the orangutans, young and old, can be a bit mischievous.

“It’s never a boring day in their building,” said Christina Daum, assistant curator of primates at Audubon. “They’re always nding new things to play with.

We’ve taught all of them how to trade.

You’ll ask them for whatever they’re holding and offer a reward to them in exchange. It’s really cute to see them react and respond.”

Daum shared more about the orangutans’ lifestyles, activities, and how people can help support the species in the wild.

How would you describe the orangutans’ personalities?

The girls and babies tend to run the show, while the older males are more laidback. Some of them are people-oriented and love attention and are always running around. Some are more relaxed and just like to observe everything. They stay in their inside area with dens, which the public does not have access to, and then the outdoor yard area where people can see them.

They have access to both 24 hours a day except if we’re cleaning, and it’s not uncommon to see them bouncing between them throughout the day.

A lot of people ask us how they like being in such a large group. If they don’t want to hang out with the others on a certain day, they can keep to themselves. However, we do see a lot of cooperation among the entire group, especially among the babies.

They tend to play with each other, take naps together and seek each other out a lot.

What are some of their common daily activities?

They are fed six to eight times a day.

Their diet is usually greens and fruits, as well as a biscuit that’s basically like a vitamin and has everything they need from a nutritional standpoint.

They know how to use simple tools within their environment or sh things out. We also really encourage nest building. This takes up a large portion of their day, in which they are gathering sticks, leaves, hay, wood wool, pine straw, blankets, towels, sheets and other materials to make a nest.

Orangutans are so interesting because they watch everything humans do. There have been a lot of cases in the wild where they see humans use tools or a pulley system and are then able to do it themselves. They’re so observant. If you touch a lock, they know you’re about to open a door.

They’re watching everything we do all the time.

How does the Audubon staff balance enrichment and safety for the orangutans?

We take a lot of measures to make sure we’re never putting them in harm’s way. If there’s an item for them to reach for, we make sure it’s at a safe distance so they’re not at risk of falling and that it’s not some-

thing that could hurt them. It’s important to be cognizant of their size and abilities. There are some toys we don’t give the younger ones because they could possibly get stuck inside.

It’s really about evaluating them on an individual basis.

One of the newest orangutans at Audubon is Roux, who will turn two in December. Tell us about his health journey and how he’s doing today.

His birth was pretty easy and he seemed okay for about 12 hours. But, the next morning, he was listless, a little gray and not gripping well.

Those were all signs that he wasn’t doing well because a newborn orangutan should be holding on to the mom very tightly.

He ended up having a rough few months where he had to be fed by a tube and get IV uids. Once he got stronger, we were able to bottle feed him. Then, we did exercises with him to help him build up muscle. He got to a good place with his health and weight, so we were able to put him back with his mother, Menari. He was able to nurse from her and get back onto the right track.

Today, Roux climbs, eats on his own and plays. He has come a long way in less than two years. It’s still a mystery as to what caused those initial issues. Once we got him over that hump of not eating well, he was ne.

He has a clean bill of health now.

biggest ways the public can help orangutans is to only purchase and use certied sustainable palm oil.

You can use the Sustainable Palm Oil Shopping app to scan product barcodes, as well as research which companies use sustainable oils.

This is important because orangutan habitats are destroyed, burned and replaced by plantations to create conventional palm oil. The less demand there is for those products, the less chance there is for habitat destruction.

Want To Visit?

This is the perfect time to visit the orangutans at Audubon Zoo. Visit www.audubonwonder.com for information on tickets and planning your trip.

The best value if you plan on visiting the Aquarium, Insectarium or Audubon Zoo more than once is to purchase an Audubon Membership.

In addition to unlimited visits, Members enjoy discounts at Audubon gi shops, concessions, special events such as Zoo-To-Do and Zoo-To-Do for Kids, Zoo Camps and much more.

For a full list of benets and to nd out how to become a Member visit www.audubonmembership.com and save today.

Audubon Zoo offers Orangutan Family Fun Encounters on Wednesdays and Sundays. These experiWhat is being done to help orangences allow visitors to go behind utans in the wild? the scenes, feed the orangutans on skewer sticks and learn more about All orangutans are critically endangered. We participate with the Orang- enrichment and conservation. Visit https://audubonnatureinstitute. utan Species Survival Plan (SSP) to org/orangutan-family-fun help with breeding and increasing conservation efforts. One of the to learn more.

SPONSORED CONTENT

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Animal of the Month: Orangutans stay active while bonding with each other and meeting new visitors

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Gambit’s Holiday Event Guide

Arts & Entertainment......... 5 Eat & Drink..................... 25 Music Listings.................. 33 Hip-Hop at 50 Q&A: Soul Rebels..................... 35 Going Out....................... 38 Puzzles.......................... 39 C OV E R BY S C O T T T H R E L K E L D A N D S O P H I A G E R M E R / T H E T I M E S- P I C AY U N E C OV E R P H O TO E L E M E N T S

BY G E T T Y I M AG E S .

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John Mulaney

Seeing the light

LUNA Fete and Greenway Supernova are festivals of art and light | by Will Coviello ARCHITECTS OF AIR FOUNDER AND DESIGNER ALAN PARKINSON admits to

being a bit of a killjoy when he decided to take some of the bounce out of his inflatable structures. It’s not that he didn’t appreciate what kids most loved about jumping around in them. Afterall, he had assembled inflatables in his own backyard for his kids in England.

But 30 years and more than 30 massive, maze-like Luminariums later, his vision has been validated that people of all ages would also enjoy more mystical wanderings in the luminous attractions.

“One of the comments that I get most often from people coming out of the Luminarium is describing it as like being back in the womb,” Parkinson said in an interview from his home in France.

Daedalum, named after the creator of the labyrinth imprisoning the Minotaur in Greek mythology, is part of New Orleans’ LUNA Fete, the festival of art, light and technology held Dec. 7-10 outside the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

Now in its 10th year, LUNA Fete has grown to include art and light installations, live music and DJs, an art market and the LUNA Ball, a fundraiser for Arts New Orleans, formerly known as the Arts Council of New Orleans. There also are video mapping projections and displays in downtown Gretna for LUNA West. And in a similar festival of art and light installations, there is Greenway Supernova on the Lafitte Greenway on Dec. 7-9.

Parkinson’s Luminariums are giant inflatable structures with light and color projections and features. Daedalum looks like a space-age beehive with 18 giant egg-shaped domes connected around a massive cathedral-like room.

The Luminariums are made of an opaque vinyl. They’re flexible, and though the labyrinth isn’t so big that one could get lost, it is meant to be slightly disorienting. Together with the lighting, the effect is to create a sense of wonder that’s like a return to childhood, Parkinson says.

Parkinson got his idea from a previous job in his native Britain in the 1980s. He worked with a social services program in which criminal offenders were given jobs bringing inflatables to kids in under-resourced communities and to children and adults with learning disabilities. He says really they were mostly inflatable mattresses that people jumped or lounged on, and some programs included theatrical presentations.

“I got interested in design and saw structures other people had made that involved going inside instead of bouncing off,” he says. “I was inspired to have a go at doing my own.”

Since his original efforts, the structures have grown to a massive scale.

His designs incorporate architectural inspirations from grand cathedrals and mosques. There are now five Luminariums touring the globe, with Daedalum in the U.S., one in Asia and Australia and three in Europe.

After growing up with his inflatables, Parkinson’s son and daughter now help design the Luminariums.

While the manipulation of light and color in the Luminarium seems like it makes them perfect nighttime attractions, Parkinson prefers entering during daytime, because of the effects of natural light on the experience.

Daelalum is open to all ages, but children must be accompanied by adults. Shoes are not allowed inside. It’s open 6-10 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 7, and Friday, Dec. 8, and 3:30 p.m.-10 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 9, and Sunday, Dec. 10.

For more information and Luminarium tickets, visit LUNAfete.com.

At the Convention Center, LUNA Fete also will have several art installations, including Abram Santa Cruz’s giant Electric Dandelions and a motion-activated lit wall called Fences by Nicholas Lavella of Immerge Interactive. Anaisa Franco Studio’s interactive Expanded Iris takes an image of a person’s iris and projects it as if it were its own galaxy. There also are fashion shows of light and wearable technology by VanShawn Branch and Renee Johnson’s Afri Modiste.

Deadalum is a labyrinth full of light and color effects.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY ARCHITECTS OF AIR

LUNA Fete’s music lineup features Water Seed, IFE, Charm Taylor, Gladney, DJ Kuti, Lil Jodeci and Saint Amethyst.

In downtown Gretna, LUNA West features video mapping projections on City Hall at 740 2nd St. Video mapping allows video projections on the 3D surfaces of buildings. LUNA Fete began with several video mapping movies being projected on Gallier Hall.

Also part of LUNA West are lantern puppet parades featuring a giant turtle by Whatchamapuppet, and participants can make their own light wands in Memorial Square to carry in the procession. There also will be live music and entertainment, a holiday market and more. LUNA West is from 6 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 7, through Sunday, Dec. 10.

On the Lafitte Greenway Plaza off Bayou St. John, Greenway Supernova presents light and art installations, live music and art and food vendors at 5-9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 7, through Saturday, Dec. 9. Installations include Brennan Steele’s lit bubble field, a video mapping projection by Stephen Montalvo, a light and audio installation by Zachary Viet Pine and Miguel Velasquez Vasquez and more.

The music lineup features SaxKixAve, Bon Bon Vivant, Sierra Green & The Giants, Margie Perez, Tiny Dinosaur, Sweet Magnolia and more.

For information on events, visit lunafete.com and lafittegreenway. org/supernova_2023. For more information about Daedalum, visit architects-of-air.com.

After five years on “Saturday Night Live,” John Mulaney released a series of popular comedy specials. In his most recent one, “Baby J,” released in April, he drew laughs from reflections on some of the harder times he hit with substance abuse and recovery. He makes a tour stop in New Orleans at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9, at the Mahalia Jackson Theater. Find tickets via mahaliajacksontheater.com.

John Mulaney from his Comedy Central special ‘New In Town.’

FILE PHOTO

‘New Orleans Jazz Nutcracker’

The Marigny Opera Ballet’s version of the classic “Nutcracker” ballet is filled with French Quarter characters instead of toys and children, though it keeps some of the rats. Clara just wants to not be alone for the holidays when she goes to Jackson Square and meets some mysterious strangers. The contemporary ballet also features a score by local composer Lawrence Sieberth, inspired by Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece.

At the Marigny Opera House Dec. 8-10 and 15-17. Tickets $35-$60 via marignyoperahouse.org.

‘A Christmas Carol’

Patrick Barlow, the playwright behind the comedic parody “The 39 Steps,” puts a fresh and comedic spin on Charles Dickens’ classic, with a cast of five and a quick pace. Crescent City Stage presents the show Dec. 7-21 at Marquette Theatre at Loyola University New Orleans. Find tickets at crescentcitystage.com.

Running of the Santas

The annual holiday party has a costume contest for both the naughty and the nice, and everybody heads to the North Pole at Generations Hall for music by the Bucktown All-Stars and more. Essentially a two-stop pub PAGE 31

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NEW ORLEANS NEWS + VIEWS

Rest In Power Shane McGowan, patron saint of drunks and poets

# TC OH EU N T

T H U M B S U P/ THUMBS DOWN

The New Orleans City Council last week recognized the city’s contribution to hip-hop with a presentation and proclamations given to the New Orleans musicians, producers, artists and personalities that have shaped the city’s sound.

Wild Wayne, Mia X, Katey Red, KLC, DJ Jubilee, Polo Silk, Devious, Lady Red, Keedy Black and many others were honored by the council, and several artists spoke about the city’s impact on hip-hop at large.

“There’s nothing to celebrate without our city, without our culture, our sound, our voice,” said Council Member Freddie King III, who led the presentation.

Posse New Orleans, the local chapter of the nonprofit Posse Foundation, has helped nearly 500 New Orleans high school students secure more than $100 million in college scholarships over the last 12 years. Posse work to support high-achieving students from underserved backgrounds attend college. Of the New Orleans Posse scholars, about 60% were first-generation college students, nearly 90% graduated in four years, and 66% have returned to New Orleans.

Southern University at New Orleans and Wilcox Academy have opened a new early learning center on SUNO’s campus, giving students who are parents an easier option for affordable childcare.

The Wilcox Academy of Early Learning in Gentilly so far has 15 children enrolled but can take on 125 kids from ages 2 months old to 10 years old.

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THE HEIGHT, IN FEET, OF THE LARGEST MENORAH IN THE STATE. The menorah was crafted by Holocaust survivor Isak Borenstein over 20 years ago and will be lit the first night of Hanukkah, Dec. 7 at Spanish Plaza at 6 p.m. The Hanukkah celebration is from 5-7 and is free and open to all denominations and includes live music, kosher food, games and children’s activities.

House Speaker Mike Johnson and fellow Louisianan Rep. Clay Higgins.

PHOTO BY ALEX BRANDON / THE AP

Clay Higgins compares move to expel George Santos from Congress to ‘crucifixion’ WASHINGTON — REP. CLAY HIGGINS, R-LAFAYETTE, IS URGING HIS HOUSE COLLEAGUES to vote against the expul-

sion of embattled Rep. George Santos of New York, saying his GOP colleague is being publicly and unfairly crucified.

Santos, 35, gained fame when he was caught lying about his college education and job experience during the 2022 campaign.

A 52-page House Ethics Committee Ethics report released Nov. 16 alleged, among other findings, that Santos deceived donors and “blatantly stole from his campaign” donations to fund lavish trips and buy designer clothing. The committee stated that it would refer its findings to the criminal division of the U.S. Justice Department.

Santos is already facing a 23-count federal indictment in New York, which includes allegations that he stole campaign funds.

Higgins questioned how the House Ethics Committee went about investigating Santos.

He wrote his House colleagues Monday that the report amounts to character assassination and “is wrapped in a media incensed public disclosure that any reasonable man can see is the Congressional equivalent of a public crucifixion.”

Higgins claimed the report was filled with “conjecture, opinion, and pejorative language.” Higgins, a former law enforcement officer, went on to say no experienced cop would present such an investigative report to a prosecutor for action.

He added that he would not vote to expel Santos.

At least three resolutions, sponsored by members of both parties, have been filed seeking Santos’ removal. Under the rules, a member of the House could call for a procedural move that would require a vote to expel by the end of the week.

Santos had beaten back a previous expulsion motion. But that was before the release of the Ethics Committee report, which Santos characterized on X, formerly Twitter, as “a disgusting politicized smear that shows the depths of how low our federal government has sunk.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, held a long discussion with Santos over the Thanksgiving holiday about options facing the Long Island, N.Y., representative, according to several media outlets.

Santos is nominally aligned with the 18 or so most conservative PAGE 9

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Republican members in the House, whose numbers sometimes include Higgins. Santos is expected to have support among some of those right-wingers but it is unclear how many, like Higgins, would oppose expelling him.

The GOP’s House majority is so narrow that a small group of ultra-conservatives have been able to force inclusion of their positions in legislation by holding up votes on bills that fellow Republicans want passed.

Eight of them put together the coup that toppled Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-California, from the speakership in October.

Republicans hold 221 seats in the 435-seat House, though Johnson is swearing in a new Republican member Tuesday evening, which will make 222. A majority of 218 is needed to pass most legislation and hold administrative power in the House. If Santos were removed, just four Republican defectors could derail bills that are broadly popular with the majority.

Only five representatives have been expelled since 1789 when the U.S. House was first seated. The charges against them range from supporting the Confederacy during the Civil War to treason and bribery.

Jim Traficant, D-Ohio, in 2001 was the last House member expelled by his colleagues. He was convicted on 10 felony counts stemming from taking campaign funds for personal use.

Higgins, 62, is not new to criticizing law enforcement efforts.

Just this month, Higgins interrogated FBI Director Christopher Wray at a House hearing, asking Wray about “ghost buses” full of FBI agents or informants who Higgins suggested had orchestrated the Jan. 6, 2021 riot

From left, Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo.

PHOTO BY J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE / THE AP

at the U.S. Capitol, then “intentionally entrapped” participants, many of whom supported Donald Trump.

Wray was dumbfounded, saying he couldn’t comment on law enforcement tactics, but making clear he had never heard of “ghost buses” and knew nothing of Higgins’ allegations.

Higgins presented no evidence to back up his claims.

Earlier in the month, Higgins sought leniency in sentencing for a Texas man who had pleaded guilty to assaulting police officers on Jan. 6.

Higgins, who grew up in Covington, joined the Opelousas City Police Department in 2004 and spent almost a dozen years in law enforcement after that, following more than two decades as a car salesman.

He left the Opelousas force three years later after allegedly giving false statements to a panel investigating how Higgins performed his duties.

Higgins then moved to the police department at Port Barré; he then joined the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Department in 2011. In 2014, Higgins was assigned to produce weekly Crimestoppers segments for Lafayette television. His tough talk about suspects sought by law enforcement attracted international attention. Higgins resigned from the Sheriff’s Office in 2016 and successfully ran for Congress. — Mark Ballard / The Times-Picayune

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Counting our blessings — and asking for one more AS WE ENTER THE HOLIDAY SEASON, WE TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY to reflect on

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some of this year’s many blessings — and to make a pitch for becoming a Gambit member.

First, a wellearned thanks to you, our readers and advertisers. Over the last decade, local news organizations have suffered tremendously.

Across America, venture capital takeovers, the pandemic and a rigged online advertising market have caused thousands of journalists, production staff, advertising associates and others in the news industry to lose their jobs. Even worse, hundreds of communities no longer have trusted local news outlets to keep them informed of local issues and local governmental decisions and actions.

It’s been particularly difficult for alt-weeklies like Gambit. Many have ceased publishing altogether, and too often those that remain have either shifted to monthly or biweekly schedules or gone completely digital.

Some of that shift is understandable. The world around us is increasingly “online.” But, as in most cases, New Orleans does things differently. Folks here still want to read their paper. Picking up Gambit at your local coffee shop or grocery store is a part of many New Orleanians’ weekly routine, and we really appreciate that.

Likewise, local business owners continue to advertise in our print edition, which provides the foundation upon which Gambit operates. Make no mistake, advertising with Gambit clearly helps sustain small businesses’ bottom lines, but it also reflects their commitment to our community. We all should thank them for that.

That support notwithstanding, running a free newspaper remains, like any business, an expensive proposition. That’s why we launched our Gambit membership program several years ago. Members’ donations support the independent, locally driven news that you have come to expect from us for more than 40 years — and that you won’t get anywhere else.

PHOTO BY SHAWN THOMAS / GAMBIT

Take Jake Clapp’s ongoing series on the 50th anniversary of hip-hop.

Jake has produced more than a dozen pieces on New Orleans’ hip-hop history and the vital role New Orleans has played in this world-altering culture’s growth. It’s a remarkable, one-of-a-kind project that brings needed attention to the musicians, dancers, producers and artists who have made that history.

Our coverage of City Hall has brought positive change for our community, uncovered corruption and misuse of taxpayer dollars and shed light on emerging problems facing New Orleans.

With a new governor whose past suggests he will be hostile toward New Orleans and a state legislature dominated by arch-conservative Republicans, the next four years will present many challenges to New Orleans. That makes free, independent journalism all the more important.

During this season of giving, we ask that you consider becoming a Gambit member. We offer memberships to fit any budget.

Your membership will help ensure we can continue to speak truth to power — and it will support our ongoing mission to celebrate and uplift our city, our culture and you, the people who make New Orleans such an amazing place to call home.

To sign up, go to nola.com/gambit/ commit_change/ or use the QR code below.

It’s not easy bein’ blue in a ruby-red Louisiana House, but new Dem chair ready to try

THE THRILLS. THE FUN. THE TRADITION.

THE RECENT ELECTION CYCLE WAS DISASTROUS

for Louisiana Democrats.

Republicans made a clean sweep of statewide offices — by landslide margins in most cases — and captured a supermajority in both the House and Senate.

In ruby-red Louisiana politics these days, it’s not easy bein’ blue.

Nobody recognizes that more than state Rep. Matt Willard of New Orleans, the new chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

“It’s gonna be tough,” acknowledges Willard, who recently won his second House term without opposition. “But, while the numbers aren’t on our side, we can still find ways to succeed at representing the working families of Louisiana.”

The key, Willard says, will have to be bipartisanship.

“We have way too many problems for partisanship to get in the way of the Legislature working in a bipartisan manner to bring relief to the people of our state, most of whom are suffering right now,” Willard says, ticking off a list of challenges facing every household and business in the state. “Affordable insurance for homes and autos — and availability. Education. Public safety.”

“We all need to focus on quality-of-life issues,” he adds. “The people in our state are struggling. I believe we can work together to make the state better for all of us.”

Bipartisanship is a two-way street, however. House and Senate Republicans have enough votes to do whatever they want without seeking votes from their Democratic colleagues — if the GOP members can stick together.

And many Republicans, including Gov.-elect Jeff Landry, ran on platforms that focused on culture-war issues such as restricting abortion and LGBTQ rights.

“Culture war bills get the attention of the media and onlookers, but the real work that helps the people of Louisiana often goes unnoticed,” Willard says.

“We have way too many kitchen-table issues that need to be prioritized.”

Senate Democrats have not yet chosen their caucus chair, but that leader will face the same challenges.

Rep. Matthew Willard PHOTO BY TRAVIS SPRADLING / THE ADVOCATE

Because they don’t have the numbers to make them relevant on every issue, legislative Dems will have to make friends in high places — with the House and Senate leadership and with Landry.

Willard says he already has a “cordial, respectful” relationship with apparent new House Speaker Phillip DeVillier of Eunice. They both served on the House Ways and Means Committee for the past four years.

“What we want from a speaker is what every House member wants, regardless of party — someone who will be a friend and an ally,” Willard says. “We want someone who’ll give us access, help members get on committees that they want, and help members deliver for their districts.”

Willard acknowledges he doesn’t have a relationship with Landry, but he plans to reach out soon.

“My main goal will be to establish a relationship with him,” Willard says.

He stops short of using the word “optimistic,” but he says he’s confident he can reach across the aisle to get things done.

“I try to see the best in people,” he says. “Besides, if my Republican colleagues shut out the Democrats, they’d be shutting out the people we represent, which is more than 30% of the state. I don’t think they want to do that.”

We’ll know soon enough. Even under the best of circumstances, it won’t be easy bein’ blue for the next four years.

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Hey Blake,

Al Copeland’s Christmas display at his house in Metairie is well known, but I was telling a friend that I remember it being at another location for a few years as well. Can you help fill in the details?

Dear reader,

POPEYES FOUNDER AL COPELAND’S CHRISTMAS DISPLAY WAS INSPIRED by

his childhood memories of visiting the Centanni family’s display at their Canal Street home in Mid-City. Growing up in public housing, Copeland promised himself if he ever had the means, he would decorate in a similar, grand fashion.

After founding Popeyes in 1972, he purchased a mansion at 5001 Folse Drive along the Metairie lakefront.

“By Christmas 1974, I started my own display of Christmas lights with a 15-foot Rudolph and an 18-foot snowman. It was the first time anyone had seen figures so large and decorated with thousands of tiny lights,” Copeland explained in a 2006 TimesPicayune advertisement. The display drew a huge crowd from the start.

According to the book “Secrets of a Tastemaker” by Chris Rose and Kit Wohl, Copeland added to the display every year, with a nativity scene (and neon Star of Bethlehem), giant toy soldiers, snowmen, and a string of lights that proclaimed “Merry Christmas, Y’all!” In 1985, The Washington Post reported that Copeland’s $50,000 display included about 400,000 lights.

322 Lafayette St., in the Warehouse District

504-615-9414 Nolablissmassage.com Al Copeland’s light display at his home on Folse Drive in 2000 PHOTO BY MICHAEL DEMOCKER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

Despite its popularity, some of Copeland’s neighbors expressed displeasure with the growing spectacle.

The first of 13 lawsuits came in 1983.

“The crowd that the display attracts makes us captives in our own homes,” a neighbor told The Washington Post.

In 1985, the Louisiana Supreme Court ordered Copeland to tone down his display. In 1986, he moved the display to seven and a half acres outside Popeyes corporate headquarters at 1333 S. Clearview Parkway in Elmwood.

In 1990, the light display moved to the grounds of the State Capitol in Baton Rouge. The lights went dark in 1991 when Copeland filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy following his purchase of Church’s. In 1994, a smaller display returned to Copeland’s home in Metairie, where it remained even after he moved to Mandeville.

His family staged the display one last time following Copeland’s death from cancer on Easter 2008. Many of the lights and giant figures were donated to Jefferson Parish, where they are part of the Christmas display at Lafreniere Park.

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BLAKEVIEW THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON MARKS 75 YEARS SINCE THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEW ORLEANS HOLIDAY ICON: Mr. Bingle. The snowman with the ice cream cone hat,

holly wings and candy cane-striped mittens made his debut in December 1948 advertisements for the Maison Blanche department store.

Mr. Bingle, whose initials matched the store’s, was the brainchild of display director Emile Alline. The character was an immediate hit, as The Times-Picayune noted the following year. “He emerged as a definite personality when his antics as Santa’s helper attracted crowds to the Maison Blanche window puppet show,” the newspaper reported in November 1949.

Those puppet shows in the store’s Canal Street window brought Bingle to life, thanks to puppeteer Edwin “Oscar” Isentrout, who gave Bingle his distinctive highpitched voice and playful personality.

In 1949, Mr. Bingle began appearing on his own TV show on WDSU, complete with a theme song which began, “Jingle, jangle, jingle, here comes Mr. Bingle with another message from Kris Kringle!” Maison Blanche began selling Bingle dolls and merchandise and introduced a giant Mr. Bingle figure which was displayed on the front of the store (now The Ritz-Carlton hotel).

Bingle remains a New Orleans holiday favorite, even 25 years after the Maison Blanche chain was purchased by Dillard’s in 1998. The store continues to market Mr. Bingle merchandise. The giant Mr. Bingle which was displayed outside the Canal Street store (and later the Dillard’s at Lakeside Shopping Center) has been a fixture at City Park’s Celebration in the Oaks since 2005.

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@GambitBlake | askblake@gambitweekly.com

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THROUGH JAN. 2 NORD’s Holiday in the Park The New Orleans Recreation Development Commission hosts its second annual holiday light show at the Joe W. Brown Park in New Orleans East. The free event is open daily between dusk and 9:30 p.m. See nordc.org for more information.

DEC. 7-10 Luna Fete The festival of art, light and technology brings projection mapping projects, art installations, an art market and more to the pedestrian mall in front of the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and across the river in Gretna from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Find information at lunafete.com.

DEC. 21-30 NOLA Christmas Fest There’s a winter wonderland with ice skating, games, rides, photos with Santa, food, a market and more inside the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. Visit nolachristmasfest.com for tickets and details.

PHOTO BY SCOTT THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

HOLIDAY

E v e n t s Events GUIDE If there’s one thing New Orleans instinctively know how to do, it’s to party and have a good time. We don’t even need a reason. It’s Tuesday, you say! Well then let’s have us a party, bruh! That said, when we actually do have a particular reason, we do it right — and in abundance.

That means there’s a ton of fun stuff happening around New Orleans during the holidays, ranging from classic mainstays like Celebration in the Oaks to comedy shows, plays, dance parties and even naked sushi! Here’s a roundup of some of the events in and around the city during the holiday season, and be sure to check our calendar online for the latest. Happy holidays!

DEC. 1-30 Christmas in Lafreniere Park The Metairie park is decorated with holiday lights and displays featuring a magic castle, the New Orleans Saints, a giant sea serpent and more. The drive-through attraction is $10 per car in advance, $15 per car at the gate. Visit lafrenierepark.org/christmas for details.

DEC. 2 Algiers Bonfire There’s music by Kermit Ruffins and the Barbecue Swingers and others, and the burning of a 30-foot wooden assemblage on the levee near the ferry landing in Algiers Point. From 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Visit algierseconomic.com for details.

DEC. 7 Chanukah at the Riverwalk Chabad-Lubavitch and Riverwalk Outlets light a menorah at Spanish Plaza and celebrate the Jewish holiday with music, crafts, kosher foods including latkes and more. Find details on eventbrite.com.

DEC. 8 Y2K Winter Formal: An Evening with the Brightsides Brightsides, billed as “New Orleans’ premier 2000s dance, pop, and rock band for cool kids,” will hold a late ‘90s/early 2000s themed dance party at Zony Mash.

There’s also a Best Dressed costume contest. Show kicks off at 8 p.m. Tickets $10 in advance, $15 at the door. See eventbrite.com for details.

DEC. 9 New Orleans SantaCon The annual “everybody get dressed up as Santa Claus, get super drunk and make questionable decisions” celebration hits the city starting at 1 p.m. In addition to packing the French Quarter with gangs of roving Santas for a bar crawl, it also features a “Running of the Santas” with an afterparty at Generations Hall. Check eventbrite.com for more information.

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THROUGH DEC. 30 Celebration in the Oaks More than a million lights and holiday displays, as well as dinosaurs and a pirate ship, fill City Park in an attraction accessible by driving or walking tours. Find tickets and information at celebrationintheoaks.com.

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HOLIDAY EVENTS GUIDE

DEC. 9 Cocktails and Candy Canes A holiday event benefiting the Special Olympics of St. Charles will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Grand Ridge Country Club in Luling. There’s a silent auction, live music, food and cocktails.

Tickets are $50 via eventbrite.com.

DEC. 9 Challah Day Party A night of celebration and connection, sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, for adults 2139 in the Jewish community at 7 p.m. at 1133 Margaret Place. The event will include a DJ, dancing, an open bar and Chanukah noshes (kosher options available). Tickets start at $18. jewishnola.com/ChallahDay. DEC. 9 Lights on the Lake Pontchartrain Conservancy’s family-friendly celebration is from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the New Canal Lighthouse. The West End Boat Parade is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. to 7:15 p.m., and the event will also include hands-on activities for the kids, food trucks, stilt walkers, choirs and dancing performances. Admission is $10 (free for children 5 and under). Check scienceforourcoast.org for details.

DEC. 16 The Bad Santa Claudes Holiday Costume Party Hi-Ho Lounge hosts its annual holiday costume party, featuring performances by Hollyrock, Bakey’s Brew, Whisper Party! and The Budz. The party starts at 8 p.m., and the costume contest winner gets “a lump of coal, $100 and 2 tickets to next year’s Boba Fete.” Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 at the door. For more information, check eventbrite.com.

DEC. 17

Caroling in Jackson Square The free community sing-along gathers thousands of people for the tradition of holiday singing, with carols led by local dignitaries and clergy.

Singing is from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sponsor Patio Planters will have volunteers on hand to distribute free songbooks and candles. Download songbook at patioplanters.net.

DEC. 20 Home for the Holidays The annual music and art event benefiting the Daniel Price Memorial Fund for Aspiring Artists will be at the House of Blues, hosted by The NOCCA Foundation, The Times-Picayune and the Price family. It will feature performances by Irma Thomas, John Boutte, Kermit Ruffins, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Ivan Neville, Stanton

Moore, and more. The patron party is from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., and the concert runs from 8 p.m. to midnight. Tickets start at $79.50 at NOCCAfoundation.org/holiday.

PARADES DEC. 2 Children’s Hospital Holiday Parade The family-friendly parade starts at 11 a.m. at the French Market with an extended route through downtown. It will feature 30 holiday-themed floats, helium balloons, more than a dozen dancing groups and marching bands, and will end with a concert in Lafayette Square. Visit nolaholidayparade. com for more information.

DEC. 2 Krampus NOLAuf The Krewe of Krampus presents its haunting holiday parade full of Alpine spirits, Swampus, the Krampus Horns and more in Bywater at 7:30 p.m. with afterparties at Bratz Y’all and Bud Rip’s.

Visit kreweofkrampus.com for details.

DEC. 9 West End Christmas Boat Parade The annual boat parade starts at 5:30 p.m., featuring boats decked out in holiday lights. It begins by the Lighthouse, proceeds along Lakeshore Drive to Canal, then up and down the New Basin Canal, along the Point and finally through Municipal Harbor. For more information, visit facebook.com/westendchristmasboatparade.

DEC. 9 Harahan Christmas Parade The annual parade starts at noon at the intersection of Hord Street and Jefferson Highway, proceeds in the westbound lanes of Jefferson Highway and ends at Folse Street.

MOVIES THROUGH DEC. 23 Movies with Santa Every Saturday through Christmas the Prytania Theaters at Canal Place will be showing holiday movies. Tickets include the movie, popcorn and a cold drink. Check theprytania.com for more information. Movies and dates are as follows: Dec. 2: “Jack Frost” Dec. 9: “Elf” Dec. 16: “The Polar Express” Dec. 23: “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (live-action)

FILE PHOTO BY JABEZ BERNIARD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

STRICTLY FOR THE KIDDOS THROUGH DEC. 27 Roosevelt Teddy Bear Tea The Roosevelt Hotel hosts its annual holiday tea party series. Children receive a Roosevelt Teddy Bear, and there’s photos for purchase with Santa, storytelling by Mrs. Claus and other visitors from the North Pole.

The tea also includes snacks and pastries, as well as sparkling wine and mimosas for adults. Tickets start at $72 for kids and $95 for adults. Check therooseveltneworleans.com for more details.

THROUGH DEC. 23 Photos with Gentilly Santa Claus Gentilly Santa, one of several Black Santas in the area, is holding three chances for kids to get their pictures this year. He’ll be at Backatown Coffee Parlour Dec. 17 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., and Emline store Dec. 21

from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and Dec. 23 from 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Appointments must be booked in advance via gentillysantapics.as.me.

THROUGH DEC. 24 Photos with Santa at Lakeside Mall Santa Claus will be available for photo ops with children in the Lakeside Shopping Center’s center court daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 6 p.m.

Sunday. See lakesideshopping.com for package prices or to book an appointment. Walk-ups also welcome.

DEC. 9 BK House’s Annual Kids Holiday Tea Party Head over to The Historic BK House & Gardens from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for their annual kids-centered tea party, featuring storytelling, holiday crafts, a visit from “a special guest” (wink wink), refreshments and more. General admission tickets are available for $25 at eventbrite.com.

THROUGH DEC. 29 Trixie Minx’s “Tease the Season” Burlesque Ballroom Local burlesque phenom Trixie Minx brings her comedy-infused burlesque stylings to the holiday season at The Jazz Playhouse every Friday night

PHOTO BY SCOTT THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

DEC. 11 Wicked Gremlins Gala The Wicked Gremlins Gala at Siberia features an art market, a “Gremlin Dinner” by Que Pasta Nola, delicious delights by Only Flans, tarot readings, photos with Gremlin Santa and more.

From 8 p.m. to midnight. For more information, visit siberianola.com.

DEC. 14 Naked Sushi Holiday Party Penthouse Club hosts its Naked Sushi Holiday Party, featuring sushi from Rock-n-Sake and an open bar from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. sponsored

by Hendrick’s, Milagro and Reyka.

Penthouse Pet DJ Tahlia Paris will also play, starting at 11 p.m.

DEC. 16 R Bar Christmas Party and Fundraiser Marigny mainstay R Bar hosts its annual Christmas Party and fundraiser.

This year, the bar is raising money for the Youth Empowerment Project, and you can help by getting your very own (and likely very drunken) picture with Santa. Photos are $10 bucks, and Santa will be posing from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. “or whenever Santa decides.”

MUSIC DEC. 1 The Big Easy Boys Christmas Show with the Big Easy Girls Backed by the Big Easy Brass Band, the Big Easy Boys and Big Easy Girls will pay tribute to New Orleans’ “legendary musical heritage” at the Gretna Cultural Center for the Arts.

Show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets are $55.69 via eventbrite.com.

DEC. 1 Loose Cattle’s Christmas Wrecktacular New Orleans collective Loose Cattle put on a holiday show at Maple Leaf, featuring Alexis & Sanity and Jack, Luke Spurr Allen and Arlo, John Boutte, Lola From Nola and Bruisey Peets, Anders Parker, The Iguanas, Maggie Koerner and more. Show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets are $22. For more information, check mapleleafbar.com.

DEC. 2 Dana Ives Christmas Spectacular This music festival and food drive will feature performances by Dana Ives, Quark, Virtue Signal, Midriff and more, a live drag show, food and popup vendors, and even a tattooer.

At 3 p.m. at The Rabbit Hole.

Check danaives.com for tickets and more information.

DEC. 2 LPO Holiday Spectacular The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra performs carols and holiday songs from various traditions. At Orpheum Theater at 7:30 p.m. Find tickets via lpomusic.com.

DEC. 7-8 Handel’s Messiah The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra performs the holiday classic at the Orpheum Theater. At Fuhrmann Auditorium in Covington on Friday and Orpheum Theater on Saturday, both at 7:30 p.m. Visit lpomusic.com for tickets.

DEC. 8 A Very Vappie Christmas The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation will present a concert with Don Vappie at 8 p.m., at the George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center. Tickets are $10 via Eventbrite. For more information, visit jazzandheritage.org.

DEC. 9 Marine Forces Reserve Band The free concert, to be held from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at Jefferson Performing Arts Center includes arts and crafts, kids’ activities, caroling, a tree lighting ceremony and an appearance

by Santa. Reservations suggested.

DEC. 10 Handel’s Messiah Symphony Chorus of New Orleans is supported by an orchestra for this performance of the holiday classic. At 3 p.m. at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Metairie. Visit symphonychorus.org for details.

DEC. 10 Celtic Christmas Danny O’Flaherty, former proprietor of O’Flaherty’s Irish Channel Pub, leads a holiday celebration with traditional

Celtic music, dance and stories at 2p.m. Jefferson Performing Arts Center. Tickets start at $27 via jpas.org.

DEC. 13 Trans-Siberian Orchestra Everybody’s favorite weird rock holiday band is back in town on their “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve — the Best of TSO & More” tour. Show starts at 7 p.m. at the Smoothie King Center. Tickets start at $49.75 via Ticketmaster.

DEC. 17 Benny Grunch & The Bunch The Yattiest Yats that ever sang a yatty parody song, Benny Grunch and the Bunch, will perform their hits including “The 12 Yats of Christmas,” “Ain’t Dere No More,” and “K&B Stayed Open Christmas” at Jaeger’s Seafood and Oyster House from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. There’s also an ugly sweater contest.

DEC. 22 Miss Martha’s Holiday Hoo-ha!!!

BJ’s kicks off the Christmas weekend with performances by Miss Martha and a host of special guests at 9 p.m.

DEC. 23 A Very Metal Xmas BJ’s hosts a headbangers’ Christmas Eve Eve featuring Blood & Earl and Gorguts at 9 p.m.

STAGE DEC. 1-17 ‘A Christmas Story, the Musical’ Ralphie Parker still wants his BB gun in the musical adaptation of the popular holiday film. At Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts. Find tickets at rivertowntheaters.com.

DEC. 7-21 ‘A Christmas Carol’ Crescent City Stage presents Patrick Barlow’s new adaptation of Charles

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THROUGH DEC. 31 Allways Lounge is back with a packed holiday schedule of burlesque, drag and cat shows. They’ve literally got a ton of stuff going between now and the end of the year. Below is a roundup of some of the shows happening.

Check theallwayslounge.net for more details.

Dec. 1-3, 7-10 and 13-17: “The Amazing Acrocats! Meowy Christmas:” The Amazing Acrocats are back for their run of feline fun filled shows at the club. Show times vary.

Dec. 1: “Secrets of the Sea: Unholy Holidays” featuring Xena Zeit-Geist, Vivi Noir, Poseidon Davenport and Eros Sea mixes Halloween and the winter holidays in this burlesque show at 11 p.m.

Dec. 13: “JUJU’s Chanukah Show” at 10 p.m.

Dec. 15: “Miss Piggy’s Christmas Special” drag show is hosted by Eureeka Starfish and stars Imani Nye Black, Vanessa Carr-Kennedy, Bette Tittler and Stephanie Nicole with special guests Adikus and Tony Leggio as Muppets Statler and Waldorf.

At 11 p.m.

Dec. 21: “A Very Sanderson Christmas” drag show at 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 21: “A Mostly British Chrimussss Pantomime” burlesque and drag show featuring Lady Midnight and Stanley Roy and a “British pantomime” of “Cinderella” at 10:30 p.m.

Dec. 23: “How the Drag Queens Stole Christmas” at 11 p.m.

Dec. 24: “A Queer Christmas Eve” featuring live music, drag and burlesque at 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 29: “Chaotic Good Time — Yuletide Fairytale,” a choose your own adventure burlesque and variety show at 10:30 p.m.

Dec. 30 -31: “KAPOW! Burlesque with a BANG!” New Years Eve weekend burlesque, drag and variety show at 10:30 p.m.

Dec. 31: “The Count Down: A New Years Eve Burlesque Show” at midnight

through the end of December. Shows are at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Tickets are $25 via eventbrite.com.

HOLIDAY EVENTS GUIDE

STRICTLY GROWN FOLK CHRISTMAS

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HOLIDAY EVENTS GUIDE Dickens’ classic at Marquette Theatre at Loyola University New Orleans. Find tickets at crescentcitystage.com.

DEC. 8-17 ‘New Orleans Jazz Nutcracker’ The Marigny Opera Ballet presents its original take on the holiday classic but set in Jackson Square with an array of colorful characters.

At the Marigny Opera House. Find tickets at marignyoperahouse.org.

DEC. 16-17 ‘The Nutcracker’ Jefferson Ballet Theatre and Jefferson Performing Arts Society present the classic ballet, accompanied by the Jefferson Symphony Orchestra. Find tickets via jpas.org.

DEC. 20-21 The Skivvies: Best in Snow The New York cabaret duo performs holiday classics and originals while dressed only in their underwear at Le Petit Theatre. Find tickets via lepetittheatre.com.

DEC. 3 AND 11 Holiday Haha: A Sketch Comedy Show Sure, the holidays can be a drag, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still have some laughs. Head over to Big Couch for their holiday sketch show, featuring a variety of performers from New Orleans. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 via eventbrite.com.

Shop at our NEW Lakeside Shopping Center Gallery now and join us for our Grand Opening Event on 1/6/2024.

unch BrBRING

IN THE

NEW YEAR

ISSUE DATE: DECEMBER 25 RESERVE SPACE BY DEC 15

Contact Sales and Marketing Manager Abby Scorsone Bordelon 504-636-7427 or abigail.scorsone@gambitweekly.com

DEC. 19 Christmas Without Tears Comedian Harry Shearer and singer Judith Owen host their annual holiday sing-along concert and benefit with guests including John Goodman, Bryan Batt, Samantha Fish, Kermit Ruffins and more at Orpheum Theater at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $39.50 via Ticketmaster.

DEC .23 Local boy turned national comedian Sean Patton is back in town to give the hahas and the hohos during his Christmas Eve Eve show at the Howlin’ Wolf at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $20 via eventbrite.com.

HOLIDAY MARKETS There are a LOT of holiday markets between now and Christmas featuring delicious food, hand crafted gifts, vintage trea-

sures and more for sale. Here are some.

DEC. 1-3 Christkindlmarkt Deutsches Haus hosts its free Christkindlmarkt outdoor market on Bayou St. John, featuring food, vendors and musical performances

by Kurrende Brass Band, the Hidden Wind Saxophone Ensemble, the St. John Handbell Choir, Highway Band, the Aurora Saxophone Chorus, Pfister Sisters and more.

The market opens at 4 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Check deutscheshaus.org for the lineup.

DEC. 3 Paradigm Gardens Holiday Market The market at Paradigm Gardens in Central City features 30 vendors and runs between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., with live music from noon to 2 p.m. Brunch is available. The market is free with an RSVP at paradigmgardensnola.com.

DEC. 3 Emporiumania Holiday Art Market features DJ Matty and DJ Lingerie and runs from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Emporium Arcade Bar. DEC. 6 Holiday Art Bazaar runs from 8 p.m. to midnight at Hi-Ho Lounge.

DEC. 7 Junior League of New Orleans Holly Jolly Market features more than 30 vendors and goes from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Academy of the Sacred Heart.

DEC. 9 Holiday Market with the Grinch featuring a bounce house and photo opps with the Grinch himself is from noon to 5 p.m. at Port Orleans Brewing Co. DEC. 15 Pirogue’s Whiskey Bayou Holiday Market runs from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Arabi bar.

DEC. 16 The Rabbit Hole’s “Grillin’ & Chillin’ ” Holiday Market runs from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., with live music by Miss Claudia & The Gone Country Band and free food by the Big Man Grill. There’s also a food drive benefiting Second Harvest Food Bank.

DEC. 16 Big Moni Luv’s Holiday Art and Gift Bazaar goes from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the park on the corner of St. Claude and Spain, next to Vintage Voyage.

19

from the

family to yours

STAFF WRITER SARAH RAVITS (RIGHT) AND HER SIBLINGS ANDREW AND MOLLY

The Christmas Collection is HERE BOO! TIMES-PICAYUNE DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY DAVID GRUNFELD

SALES REPRESENTATIVE BENNETT GESTON AS A BABY (LEFT PHOTO) AND WITH HER COUSIN CATHERINE (RIGHT PHOTO)

LIVE ON FACEBOOK EVERY WED AT 7PM!

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SALES AND MARKETING MANAGER ABIGAIL BORDELON WITH HER SISTER CATIE AND MOM RHONDA

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SALES & MARKETING COORDINATOR CLARE BRIERRE (LEFT) & HER SISTER CATHERINE

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Happy Holidays

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Gifting

local

Diamond Link Pendant In 14 Kt Yellow Gold $1,750 from Wellington & Co. (505 Royal St, 504-525-4855; Store.wcjewelry.com) PHOTO PROVIDED BY WELLINGTON & CO.

This holiday season, spend your money where your home is.

Jacques Marie Mage Aviators

$995 (20% off through 12/24) from Art & Eyes (3708 Magazine St, (504) 891-4494; artandeyesneworleansla.com) PHOTO PROVIDED BY ART AND EYES

Silicone Bibs

$20 from Alice and Amelia (4432 Magazine St, (504) 5026206; shopaliceandamelia.com) PHOTO PROVIDED BY ALICE AND AMELIA

RA SHOP HHC Infused Moonrocks Lemon Octane 3.5G

Crawler Earrings

$42 from gae-tana's (7732 Maple St, 504-865-9625) PHOTO PROVIDED BY GAE-TANA'S

$29.99 from RA Shop (multiple locations, therashops.com)

PHOTO PROVIDED BY RA SHOP

SPONSORED CONTENT

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$10 from Gordon’s (4306 Waverly St, (504) 354-2248; gordonshomedecor.com)

PHOTO PROVIDED BY GORDON’S

SOL Shine Pendant

$225 from Mignon Faget (3801 Magazine St, 504-891-2005 and 3301 Veterans Memorial Blvd, 504-835-2244; Mignonfaget.com) PHOTO PROVIDED BY MIGNON FAGET

Elastic Wristband Keychain $30 from Lanyard Lovebirds (lanyardlovebirds.com)

Faux gold and emerald necklace

PHOTO PROVIDED BY LANYARD LOVEBIRDS

$42 from gae-tana's (7732 Maple St, 504-865-9625) PHOTO PROVIDED BY GAE-TANA'S

Miele CM 5310 Silence Countertop coffee machine

SOL Shine Dangles

$505 from Mignon Faget (3801 Magazine St, 504-891-2005 and 3301 Veterans Memorial Blvd, 504-835-2244; Mignonfaget.com) PHOTO PROVIDED BY MIGNON FAGET

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$1799 from Nordic Kitchens and Baths Inc. (1818 Veterans Blvd, (504) 888-2300; Nordickitchens.com) Photo provided by Nordic Kitchens and Baths Inc. PHOTO PROVIDED BY NORDIC KITCHENS

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Classic revival

FORK + CENTER

A refreshed Gautreau’s reopens in Uptown | by Beth D’Addono

Email dining@gambitweekly.com

ROB MISTRY MET KATIE ADAMS WHEN HE WAS A SOUS CHEF AT COMMANDER’S

Palace and she was a line cook. Now Mistry is the executive chef at the classic Uptown restaurant Gautreau’s, and Adams is the general manager.

“But really, she’s always been my boss,” Mistry says with a smile. “I fell in love with New Orleans almost five years ago. Then I fell in love with Katie.”

The couple have been together for almost three years.

When Adams came to work in the kitchen at Gautreau’s, longtime proprietor Patrick Singley was still the owner. At the end of October, he sold the restaurant to a local investor group led by Bill Kearney and Jay Adams, Katie’s father. After a monthlong refresh, the restaurant reopened for dinner Nov. 7.

“When my dad became one of the owners, it made sense for Rob to come lead the kitchen,” she says.

The couple share a culinary background. Adams’ family is originally from Oxford, and after attending Ole Miss, she trained at the International Culinary Center in Manhattan. She worked at the Michelin-starred Carbone in New York’s Greenwich Village until the pandemic sent her home.

Mistry, who grew up in Charlotte, trained at Johnson & Wales and staged at the Michelin-starred Alinea in Chicago. He worked with chef Sean Brock at his Husk restaurants in Charleston, Savannah and Nashville before coming to Commander’s at the behest of then-chef Tory McPhail.

From the start, Mistry understood the reverence New Orleanians paid to Gautreau’s history, which dates to 1982. He says he never wanted to make “dramatic changes.” Instead, the idea was to nudge the culinary bar up a few notches.

“The food is still rooted in New Orleans,” he says. “That will always be the backbone of our menu.”

Although Gautreau’s is sometimes equated with traditional Creole restaurants — think Clancy’s or Galatoire’s — Adams and Mistry see it as more chef-driven, emphasizing

Restaurant updates

THESE HAVE BEEN TUMULTUOUS TIMES IN THE RESTAURANT BUSINESS. In New

Orleans, that’s meant change for a number of high-profile spots, and some still have giant question marks over their future. Here is the latest on six such spots.

Central Grocery

modern takes on traditional dishes. In fact, many of its chefs have gone on to open their own restaurants, including John Harris (Lilette), Sue Zemanick (Zasu) and Nick Lama (Avo).

“Mr. Singley has a really good eye for chefs,” Adams says.

Mistry sees his menu as one that tells the story of a changing city. Working closely with the kitchen team, his menu continues to evolve, including dishes that reflect his classic French training and his personal South Asian heritage — both of his parents are from Mumbai.

“In my time at Commander’s, I gained so much love for New Orleans cuisine and the amazing produce and seafood we have,” he says. “I have a lot of deference for the classics.”

At Gautreau’s, that includes the foie gras torchon with beignets and maple-mustard, a seasonal iteration of its pan-roasted chicken and the filet with blue cheese croquette.

“Everything else is up for interpretation,” Mistry says. “We want our food to be approachable.”

The mortadella en broda is a dish that marries the best of a muffuletta with ribbons of house-made pasta. Another showstopper is the local redfish a la maxime in vadouvan curry with cabbage blanquette and smoked trout roe.

Vadouvan is a French interpretation of a type of curry found in central India,

General Manager Katie Adams, Executive Chef Bob Mistry and Chef de Cuisine Andrew Freeman at Gautreau’s PHOTO BY CHERYL GERBER / GAMBIT

but it’s lighter tasting with flavors of fenugreek, onion, garlic and shallot.

“It’s traditionally made with curry leaves, but since they don’t grow here, we use bay leaves,” Mistry says. “It’s an amalgam of Indian flavors and what is available to us in New Orleans.”

Business has been steady since the early November opening, and Adams says she is growing into the general manager role. While working the dining room comes naturally to her, Adams says the administrative side of the business is new territory.

“It’s overwhelming,” she says. “I’m definitely in school.”

But for the young couple, working together is a bright spot as they get the relaunched restaurant up and running.

Adams refers to their working relationship as having a “good yin and yang.”

“She’s glass half full; I’m half empty,” Mistry adds. “But we complement each other.”

“We don’t always see eye to eye, but we know we both are focused on the betterment of the restaurant,” Adams says. “We trust each other implicitly.”

?

WHAT

WHERE

WHEN

HOW

CHECK IT OUT

Gautreau’s

1728 Soniat St., (504) 899-7397; gautreausrestaurant.com

dinner Tue.-Sat.

dine-in

A renewed New Orleans fine-dining classic

Central Grocery has been closed more than two years now since Hurricane Ida brought massive damage. The neighboring building collapsed, sending a torrent of bricks crashing down on the Decatur Street market.

There were hopes that the market at 923 Decatur St. could be back open by Thanksgiving, but things did not work out that way.

“We want to open when it is 100%,” says Tommy Tusa, one of the family owners. “It’s been two years — I want

Central Grocery is being rebuilt after catastrophic damage from Hurricane Ida in 2021.

PHOTO BY IAN MCNULTY / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

to do it right, and in the big picture if it’s another month, that’s OK.” He expects to open by the end of the year. The Central Grocery family is bringing it back along the same lines as people remember, complete with the long counter where many a muffuletta has met the world and racks of imported Italian groceries all around.

In the meantime, the Central Grocery muffuletta is actually easier to get than ever, with a network of local retail outlets selling the sandwich and the online service Goldbelly shipping it nationally.

Here’s where to find Central Grocery muffulettas today: Sidney’s Wine Cellar, 917 Decatur St.; Zuppardo’s Family Market, 5010 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie; Rouses at 701 Baronne St.; Acquistapace’s at 125 E. 21st Ave., Covington, and 631 N. Causeway Blvd., PAGE 27

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E AT + D R I N K

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FI N E CR EOLE DI N I NG I N TH E H EA RT OF T H E WA R E H O U S E D I S T R I C T

TIS THE SEASON Enjoy Our Five Course Reveillon Menu

December 1st-23rd Special Prixe Fixe Menus Christmas Eve & New Years Eve Reservations Recommended HOLIDAY PARTY DATES STILL AVAILABLE

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Shop our Market for your Home Holiday Feast! seasonal sides, house-made pies, and our signature Bourbon Milk Punch

ORDER BY DECEMBER 18

thecommissarynola.com

27

FORK & CENTER Mandeville; NORCO Fresh Market, 217 Apple St., Norco; and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, at Moisant Market (near concourse B).

Willie Mae’s Scotch House

Willie Mae’s Scotch House is widely acclaimed for its fried chicken, and it’s known as one of the city’s oldest Black-owned restaurants, with a story of community and family running through it. It’s also contending with a challenging new chapter.

The Treme restaurant was severely damaged by a fire that broke out in the early morning of April 10, and the onetime neighborhood anchor at 2401 St. Ann St. has been closed since.

The proprietor today is Kerry Stewart-Seaton, the great-granddaughter of restaurant founder and namesake Willie Mae Seaton, who started the business as a bar in 1957.

Stewart-Seaton says the steps to reopen are slowly progressing. Plans for the rebuild were approved at the beginning of November, and the next step is permitting. A reopening in the spring is possible.

“We’ll be back; it’s just going to take a minute, or more like a year,” she says.

Willie Mae’s has run a second restaurant in Los Angeles since 2022, and it ships packages of fried chicken and sides nationally through Goldbelly.

great Paul Prudhomme came to fame as a global ambassador of Cajun and Louisiana flavor.

The restaurant’s permanent closure in 2020 during the depths of pandemic lockdowns was a massive blow. There are no plans to bring K-Paul’s back. However, its location at 416 Chartres St. was slated to become something entirely different and promising.

A new concept called French Quarter Boulangerie was announced, with plans to field high-volume, quick-service all-day breakfast and lunch in the French Quarter.

Now, though, those plans are off.

The partnership that was to bring the site back to life has ended, and the historic property at 416 Chartres St. is gutted.

The property was sold in 2022 and again in June, and its new owners are interested in selling the property (it’s listed for $6.9 million), leasing it or forming a joint venture with an operator and investor, according to Chris Ross, an agent with Latter & Blum representing the owners.

Upperline

Through four decades, JoAnn Clevenger ran Upperline as something more than a restaurant. It was the personal expression of her idea of hospitality — one that flowed through

Bon Ton Café

Bon Ton Cafe should be open now.

The story of why it’s not is a heartbreaker, but there is hope ahead.

The restaurant, which dates back to 1877 in one format or another, changed hands in March 2020, possibly the last local restaurant to do so without the influence of the pandemic.

It was purchased from the Pierce family by Jerry Greenbaum, proprietor of Chophouse New Orleans, the steakhouse located just across the street from Bon Ton. He’s also chair of Charleston-based restaurant group CentraArchy, which operates more than a dozen restaurants around the South.

His company was weeks away from reopening a new edition of the Bon Ton when a fire broke out on Sept.

24 at the property at 401 Magazine St. The damage was extensive. But Greenbaum says he is committed to reopening the restaurant. He now projects summer or fall of 2024 for its comeback.

K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen

Few restaurants loom larger in New Orleans culinary lore than K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen, where the late,

JoAnn Clevenger has put her restaurant Upperline up for sale.

PHOTO BY CHRIS GRANGER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

Louisiana cuisine, the art collection that made her dining rooms feel like galleries and the interplay of the people drawn there.

Upperline never reopened after the pandemic shutdowns, and in 2021, at age 82, Clevenger decided it was time to retire. She and her family put the restaurant at 1413 Upperline St. up for sale.

Clevenger says today the property has had a few serious inquiries, each of which have contemplated reopening the space as a restaurant. But it remains on the market, listed with Corporate Realty at $1.57 million.

Andrea’s Restaurant

The restaurant that chef Andrea Apuzzo created just off Causeway Boulevard in Metairie was huge, and not just in scale — although certainly it was that with 12,000 square feet indoors and parking for 200 cars.

It also loomed large as a venue for countless events involving family, business, politics or some combination thereof.

The chef sold the restaurant in the summer of 2022 to local real estate developer Anthony “A.P.” Marullo III, who had plans for an ambitious Italian restaurant that would carry that old role forward on new terms. But that never came to pass. Marullo sold the property to the New Orleans-based hospitality group Creole Cuisine Restaurant Concepts, which runs more than two dozen restaurants in the area.

Last spring, that company traced plans for a future restaurant at the address, 3100 19th St., but as of yet there are no details on the concept or its timeline. — Ian McNulty / The Times-Picayune

WINE OF THE

WEEK

Reveillon offerings REVEILLON IS A NEW ORLEANS TRADITION THAT SPRINGS from a

single format but plays out differently year to year, and table to table.

Originally, Reveillon was rooted in the city’s religious Christmas customs at home. Today, it revolves around New Orleans social customs at restaurants offering set-price, multi-course meals served throughout December.

This year, nearly 50 restaurants are serving Reveillon menus. These run Dec. 1-31, but many restaurants suspend Reveillon service on some combination of Christmas Day, New Year’s Day and both eves.

Restaurants serving Reveillon menus also have their regular a la carte menus available.

Reveillon menus have a set price, and they range from $32 to $150, depending on the restaurant. The median this year hovers around $60 (note that the listed price is the starting point, before drinks, tax and tip). There are many participating French Quarter restaurants, but there are options across town and at all sorts of restaurants, from casual to fine dining.

For details on all Reveillon restaurants, including their menus and holiday service schedules, see neworleans.com. — Ian McNulty / The Times-Picayune

Campo Viejo Cava Brut

An elegant and well-balanced sparkling wine with a round and pleasant palate with sweet spots and final reminders of apple. Balanced and open with a lingering finish.

DISTRIBUTED BY

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C O M P L E T E L I S T I N G S AT W W W. B E S T O F N E W O R L E A N S . C O M

Out 2 Eat is an index of Gambit contract advertisers. Unless noted, addresses are for New Orleans and all accept credit cards. Updates: Email willc@gambitweekly.com or call (504) 483-3106.

8 Fresh Food Assassin — 1900 N. Claiborne Ave., (504) 224-2628; Instagram, @8freshfoodassassin — Chef Manny January’s serves lamb chops, T-bone steaks, salmon, crab cakes, deep fried ribs, fried chicken and seafood-loaded oysters. No reservations. Delivery available. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $$ Acorn — Louisiana Children’s Museum, 12 Henry Thomas Drive, (504) 218-5413; acornnola.com — Blackened shrimp tacos are topped with arugula, radish, pineapple-mango salsa and cilantro-lime sauce. No reservations.

Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Sun. $$ Angelo Brocato’s — 214 N. Carrollton Ave., (504) 486-1465; angelobrocatoicecream. com — This sweet shop serves its own gelato, spumoni, Italian ice, cannolis, biscotti, fig cookies, tiramisu, macaroons and more.

Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $ Annunciation — 1016 Annunciation St., (504) 568-0245; annunciationrestaurant.com — Gulf Drum Yvonne is served with brown butter sauce with mushrooms and artichoke hearts. Reservations recommended. Dinner Thu.-Mon. $$$ Banana Blossom — 500 9th St., Gretna, (504) 500-0997; 504bananablossom.com — Jimmy Cho’s Thai dishes include smoked pork belly and pork meatballs in lemon grass broth with egg, green onion, cilantro and garlic.

Reservations accepted for large parties except weekends. Delivery available. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sat. $$ Bamboula’s — 514 Frenchmen St.; bamboulasmusic.com — The live music venue’s kitchen offers a menu of traditional and creative Creole dishes, such as Creole crawfish crepes with a goat cheese and chardonnay cream sauce. Reservations accepted. Lunch, dinner and late-night daily. $$ The Blue Crab Restaurant and Oyster Bar — 118 Harbor View Court, Slidell, (985) 315-7001; 7900 Lakeshore Drive, (504) 284-2898; thebluecrabnola.com — Basin barbecue shrimp are served over cheese grits with a cheese biscuit. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lakeview: Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. Slidell: Lunch Wed.-Fri., dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Sat.-Sun. $$ Broussard’s — 819 Conti St., (504) 581-3866; broussards.com — Rainbow trout amandine is served with tasso and corn macque choux and Creole meuniere sauce. Reservations recommended. Outdoor seating available.

Dinner Wed.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$$ Cafe Normandie — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The menu combines classic French dishes and Louisiana items like crab beignets with herb aioli. No reservations. Breakfast and lunch daily. $$ The Commissary — 634 Orange St., (504) 274-1850; thecommissarynola.com — The central kitchen for Dickie Brennan restaurants has a dine-in menu with a smoked turkey sandwich with bacon, tomato jam, herbed cream cheese, arugula and herb vinaigrette on honey oat bread. No reservations. Outdoor seating available. Lunch Tue.-Sat. $$ Curio — 301 Royal St., (504) 717-4198; curionola.com — The creative Creole menu includes blackened Gulf shrimp served with chicken

$ — average dinner entrée under $10 $$ — $11-$20 $$$ — $20-up and andouille jambalaya. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Desire Oyster Bar — Royal Sonesta New Orleans, 300 Bourbon St., (504) 586-0300; sonesta.com/desireoysterbar — A menu full of Gulf seafood includes char-grilled oysters topped with Parmesan and herbs.

Reservations recommended. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House — 144 Bourbon St., (504) 522-0111; bourbonhouse.com — There’s a seafood raw bar and dishes like redfish with lemon buerre blanc. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. $$$ Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse — 716 Iberville St., (504) 522-2467; dickiebrennanssteakhouse.com — A 6-ounce filet mignon is served with fried oysters, creamed spinach, potatoes and bearnaise. Reservations recommended. Dinner Mon.-Sat. $$$ Down the Hatch — 817 St. Louis St., (504) 766-6007; 1921 Sophie Wright Place, (504) 220-7071; downthehatchnola.com — The Texan burger features a half-pound patty topped with caramelized onions, smoked bacon, cheddar cheese and a fried egg.

No reservations. Lunch, dinner and latenight daily. $$ Dragonfly Cafe — 530 Jackson Ave., (504) 544-9530; dragonflynola.com — The casual cafe offers breakfast plates, waffles, salads, coffee drinks and more. Delivery available.

Reservations accepted. Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Sat. $$ El Pavo Real — 4401 S. Broad Ave., (504) 266-2022; elpavorealnola.com — Sauteed Gulf fish is topped with tomatoes, olives, onion and capers and served with rice and string beans. The menu includes tacos, enchiladas and more. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lunch and early dinner Tue.-Sat. $$ Felix’s Restaurant & Oyster Bar — 739 Iberville St., (504) 522-4440; 7400 Lakeshore Drive, (504) 304-4125; felixs.com — The menu includes raw and char-grilled oysters, seafood platters, po-boys and more.

No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Frey Smoked Meat Co. — 4141 Bienville St., Suite 110, (504) 488-7427; freysmokedmeat. com — The barbecue spot serves pulled pork, ribs, brisket, sausages and and items like fried pork belly tossed in pepperjelly glaze. No reservations. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Froot Orleans — 2438 Bell St., Suite B, (504) 233-3346; frootorleans.com — There are fresh fruit platters and smoothie bowls such as a strawberry shortcake and more using pineapple, berries, citrus and more. No reservations. Outdoor seating available.

Breakfast and lunch daily. $$ Juan’s Flying Burrito — 515 Baronne St., (504) 529-5825; 2018 Magazine St., (504) 569-0000; 4724 S. Carrollton Ave., (504) 486-9950; 8140 Oak St., (504) 897-4800; juansflyingburrito.com — The Flying Burrito includes steak, shrimp, chicken, cheddar jack cheese, black beans, rice, guacamole and salsa. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lunch and dinner Thu.-Tue. $$ Katie’s Restaurant — 3701 Iberville St., (504) 488-6582; katiesinmidcity.com — The

eclectic menu includes a Cajun Cuban with roasted pork, ham, cheese and pickles.

Delivery available. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $$ Kilroy’s Bar — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The bar menu includes sandwiches, salads and flatbreads, including one topped with peach, prosciutto, stracciatella cheese, arugula and pecans. No reservations. Dinner Wed.-Sat. $$ Legacy Kitchen’s Craft Tavern — 700 Tchoupitoulas St., (504) 613-2350; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes oysters, flatbreads, burgers, sandwiches, salads and a NOLA Style Grits Bowl topped with bacon, cheddar and a poached egg. Reservations accepted. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Legacy Kitchen Steak & Chop — 91 Westbank Expressway, Gretna, (504) 513-2606; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes filets mignons and bone-in rib-eyes, as well as burgers, salads and seafood dishes.

Reservations accepted. Outdoor seating available. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. $$ Luzianne Cafe — 481 Girod St., (504) 2651972; luziannecafe.com — Cajun Sunshine Beignets are stuffed with eggs, bacon, cheese and hot sauce. No reservations.

Delivery available. Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Sun. $$ Martin Wine & Spirits — 714 Elmeer Ave., Metairie, (504) 896-7350; 3827 Baronne St., (504) 894-7444; martinwine.com — The deli serves sandwiches and salads such as the Sena, with chicken, raisins, blue cheese, pecans and Tabasco pepperjelly vinaigrette.

No reservations. Lunch daily. $$ Mikimoto — 3301 S. Carrollton Ave., (504) 488-1881; mikimotosushi.com — The South Carrollton roll includes tuna tataki, avocado and snow crab. The menu also has noodle dishes, teriyaki and more. Reservations accepted. Delivery available. Lunch Sun.Fri., dinner daily. $$ Mosca’s — 4137 Highway 90 West, Westwego, (504) 436-8950; moscasrestaurant.com — This family-style eatery serves Italian dishes and specialties including chicken a la grande and baked oysters Mosca.

Reservations accepted. Dinner Wed.-Sat. Cash only. $$$ Mother’s Restaurant — 401 Poydras St., (504) 523-9656; mothersrestaurant.net — This counter-service spot serves po-boys, jambalaya, crawfish etouffee, red beans and rice and more. Delivery available. No reservations. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Neyow’s Creole Cafe — 3332 Bienville St., (504) 827-5474; neyows.com — The menu includes red beans with fried chicken or pork chops, as well as seafood platters, po-boys, grilled oysters, salads and more. No reservations. Lunch daily, dinner Mon.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$ Nice Guys Bar & Grill — 7910 Earhart Blvd., (504) 302-2404; niceguysbarandgrillnola. com — Char-grilled oysters are topped with cheese. The menu also includes wings, quesadillas, burgers, salads, seafood pasta and more. No reservations. Lunch daily, dinner Mon.-Sat. $$$ The Original Italian Pie — 3629 Prytania St., (504) 766-8912; theoriginalitalianpieuptown. com — The Italian Pie combo includes pepperoni, Italian sausage, ground beef, mushrooms, onions, bell pepper, black olives, mozzarella and house-made tomato sauce. No reservations. Dinner and late-night Tue.-Sat. $$

Orleans Grapevine Wine Bar & Bistro — 720 Orleans Ave., (504) 523-1930; orleansgrapevine.com — The wine bar’s menu includes Creole pasta with shrimp and andouille in tomato cream sauce. Reservations accepted for large parties. Outdoor seating available.

Dinner Thu.-Sun. $$ Palace Cafe — 605 Canal St., (504) 523-1661; palacecafe.com — The contemporary Creole menu includes crabmeat cheesecake with mushrooms and Creole meuniere sauce.

Outdoor seating available. Reservations recommended. Breakfast and lunch Wed.-Fri., dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Sat.-Sun. $$$ Peacock Room — Kimpton Hotel Fontenot, 501 Tchoupitoulas St., (504) 324-3073; peacockroomnola.com — Black lentil vadouvan curry comes with roasted tomatoes, mushrooms and basmati rice. Reservations accepted.

Dinner Wed.-Mon., brunch Sun. $$ PrimoHoagies — 8228 Oak St., (504) 3151335; primohoagies.com — The menu of hot and cold sandwiches includes a classic Italian hoagie with prosciutto, salami, hot capicola, provolone, lettuce, tomato and onion.

Delivery available. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Rosie’s on the Roof — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The rooftop bar has a menu of sandwiches, burgers and small plates.

No reservations. Dinner daily. $$ Tableau — 616 St. Peter St., (504) 934-3463; tableaufrenchquarter.com — Pasta bouillabaisse features squid ink mafaldine, littleneck clams, Gulf shrimp, squid, seafood broth, rouille and herbed breadcrumbs. Outdoor seating available. Reservations recommended.

Dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Thu.-Sun. $$$ Tacklebox — 817 Common St., (504) 8271651; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes oysters, and dishes like redfish St. Charles with garlic-herb butter, asparagus, mushrooms and crawfish cornbread. Reservations accepted.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Theo’s Neighborhood Pizza — 1212 S. Clearview Parkway, Elmwood, (504) 733-3803; 2125 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, (504) 5104282; 4024 Canal St., (504) 302-1133; 4218 Magazine St., (504) 894-8554; 70488 Highway 21, Covington, (985) 234-9420; theospizza.com — A Marilynn Pota Supreme pie is topped with mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, hamburger, mushrooms, bell peppers and onions. There also are salads, sandwiches and more. Delivery available. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sat. $ Tito’s Ceviche & Pisco — 1433 St. Charles Ave., (504) 354-1342; 5015 Magazine St., (504) 267-7612; titoscevichepisco.com — Peruvian lomo saltado features beef sauteed with onions, tomatoes, cilantro, soy sauce and pisco, served with fried potatoes and rice.

Outdoor seating available on Magazine Street.

Delivery available. Reservations accepted.

Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$$ The Vintage — 3121 Magazine St., (504) 324-7144; thevintagenola.com — The menu includes beignets, flatbreads and a veggie sandwich with avocado, onions, arugula, red pepper and pepper jack cheese. No reservations. Delivery and outdoor seating available.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Zhang Bistro — 1141 Decatur St., (504) 8268888; zhangbistronola.com — The menu of Chinese and Thai dishes includes a Szechuan Hot Wok with a choice of chicken, beef, shrimp or tofu with onions, bell peppers, cauliflower, jalapenos and spicy sauce.

Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner Thu.-Tue. $$

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Tickets start at $38.50 via houseofblues.com/neworleans.

Celtic Christmas

Yvie Oddly won season 11 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” with a mix of futuristic fashion and pushing drag boundaries, as well as a distinctive cackling laugh. Oddly combines comedy, music and more in her stage show. At 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 6, at House of Blues. Find tickets via oddlyyvie.com.

At his French Quarter pub, Danny O’Flaherty began a tradition of celebrating the holidays with Celtic music and dance. He’s continuing the tradition with a staged presentation featuring Celtic music and folk tunes from Ireland, Scotland, Wales and more. The show also features performers from the Muggivan School of Irish Dance. At 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 10, at the Jefferson Performing Arts Center.

Tickets $27-$67 via jpas.org.

Akaash Singh

Andrea Centazzo

Yvie Oddly

Comedian Akaash Singh’s “Bring Back Apu” special drew more than 1.5 million views after it was released following objections to the Simpsons’ character being voiced by white comedian Hank Azaria. Singh also enjoys joking about stereotypes, and he co-hosts the Flagrant podcast with Andrew Schulz. He performs at 8 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 8, at The Howlin’ Wolf.

Tickets start at $30 at eventbrite.com.

The Wood Brothers

Closing in on their 20th anniversary, The Wood Brothers have always leaned a little more into roots music’s soulful side. Brothers Oliver and Chris Wood and Jano Rix squeeze every bit of energy they can out of their acoustic instruments, making for an electrifying live show. The band’s ninth studio album, “Heart is the Hero,” was released in April. The Wood Brothers now play Tipitina’s at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 5, with The Watson Twins. Tickets are $35 via tipitinas.com.

Bad Operation and Joystick

Ska music has caught its fourth wave in recent years, and two of the best bands leading that charge are New Orleans’ Bad Operation and Joystick. The two perform at 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 7, at Chickie Wah Wah. Joystick also celebrates the release of its new EP, “Dwell,” out now on Bad Time Records, itself one of the flag-bearers of ska’s punk-fueled new wave. Tickets are $15 via chickiewahwah.com and $20 at the door.

Marcia Ball

Pianist and singer Marcia Ball has been a force in blues — and a New Orleans favorite — for more than 50 years. She returns to the House of Blues with singer-songwriter and Alligator Records labelmate Carolyn Wonderland and singer-songwriter Shelley King for a holiday show, “Gather for the Good Times,” at 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 7.

DECEMBER 11, 2023 7:30PM | DIXON HALL

PAGE 5

crawl, the festivities start at Manning’s, with doors opening at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9. Following the costume contest, revelers head to Generations Hall at 6 p.m. Find tickets and information at runningofthesantas.com.

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Composer and percussionist Andrea Centazzo quickly rose to become a leading figure in avant-garde jazz in the 1970s alongside John Zorn and Sylvano Bussotti, and he has remained a prolific performer, with more than 60 albums and 350 compositions to his name. Centazzo has never played New Orleans, but he’s making up for lost time with a series of shows featuring guest musicians this week at Happyland Theater in Bywater. On Dec. 8, he’s joined by cellist Helen Gillet. Centazzo then pays homage to poet and filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini and performs with Aurora Nealand and James Singleton on Dec. 9 and Evan Gallagher, Bruce Golden and Chris Alford on Dec. 10. Find more details at scatterjazz.com.

IMANI WINDS

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Bulbancha Bluegrass & Old Time Festival

Bulbancha is an Indigenous word for the region meaning “the place of many tongues.” The eponymous bluegrass festival will be held at the Broadside 3-9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9, and features a lineup of local musicians reflecting South Louisiana’s bluegrass and Indigenous musical influences, including Monday Night String Band, Soundwagon, Bogue Chitto, The Tanglers and Nokosee Fields & Ryan Nickerson. There will also be square dancing lessons by Nathan Harrison.

Tickets are $20 via broadsidenola.com.

LPO’s Classical Christmas

The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra celebrates the holiday season with a performance of Handel’s “Messiah” and Vivaldi’s “Gloria.”

The LPO will be conducted by Rei Hotoda and features vocalists Joel Dyson, Claire Shackleton, Chauncey Packer and Ivan Griffin and the Frazier Singers. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8, at the Orpheum Theater. Tickets start at $28 via lpomusic.com.

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MUSIC FO R CO M P L E T E M U S I C L I ST I N G S A N D M O RE E V E N T S TA K I N G P L A CE I N T H E N E W O R L E A N S A RE A , V I S I T C A L E N D A R . G A M B I T W E E K LY. C O M

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MONDAY 4 HOLY DIVER — International & Irrational w/ DJ Chrischarge, 9 pm TOULOUSE THEATRE — Early Moods, 7 pm

TUESDAY 5 DOS JEFES — Kris Tokarski, 8:30 pm ELLIS MARSALIS CENTER FOR MUSIC — Shea Pierre, 6:30 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — TBC Brass Band, 9 pm SANTOS — We Are the Asteroid, Slowhole, 9 pm THE GOAT — Dwarves, Riverboat Gamblers, The Pallbearers, 8 pm THE RABBIT HOLE — Rebirth Brass Band, 5 & 10 pm TIPITINA'S — The Wood Brothers + The Watson Twins, 8 pm

WEDNESDAY 6 BLUE NILE — New Breed Brass Band, 9:30 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Colin Davis and Night People, 6 pm SANTOS — Koffin Kats, 9 pm THE GOAT — Hexis, Midwestlust, All You Need Is Kill, Terminal Tongue, Panama Papers, 8 pm THE JAZZ PLAYHOUSE — Big Sam, 7:30 pm THE PARISH AT HOUSE OF BLUES — Yvie Oddly, 8 pm

THURSDAY 7 BLUE NILE — Where Y'at Brass Band, 9 pm BROADSIDE — David Buchbinder’s Rhythm & Jews: First Night of Hanukkah featuring Roug Garrison, Ben Schenck, Mark Rubin, Glenn Hartman and more, 7 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Sierra Green and the Soul Machine, 10 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Bad Operation & Joystick, 8 pm HOLY DIVER — Don Wayne the Rockaway Beach Madman, 9 pm HOUSE OF BLUES — Marcia Ball, Carolyn Wonderland, & More, 7 pm LE BON TEMPS ROULE — The Soul Rebels, 11 pm

OLD POINT BAR — Valerie Sassyfras, 8 pm PEACOCK ROOM, HOTEL FONTENOT — Da Lovebirds with Robin Barnes and Pat Casey , 8 pm SANTOS — Willis with Edgehill, Keaton Schiller, 9 pm SATURN BAR — Timothy Eerie, My Neptune and Drugstore Lipstick, 8 pm THE JAZZ PLAYHOUSE — Brass-AHolics, 7:30 pm

FRIDAY 8 BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Hunter Hicks + Johanna Rose Band + Crybabies, 9 pm BLUE NILE — The Caesar Brothers, 8 pm; Kermit Ruffins and the Barbecue Swingers, 11 pm BOURBON STREET HONKY TONK — The Bad Sandys, 8 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Higher Heights Reggae Band, 10 pm DOS JEFES — Jimmi Vivino & Dale Spalding, 9 pm GEORGE AND JOYCE WEIN JAZZ & HERITAGE CENTER — Don Vappie, 8 pm HOLY DIVER— Darklounge Ministries w/ Rik Slave, 8 pm LE BON TEMPS ROULE — Jake Gartenstein and Friends, 11 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — Deltaphonic, 10 pm NOLA BREWING TAPROOM — Red Hot Gentilly Peppers, 7 pm PIROGUE’S WHISKEY BAYOU — Washboard Chaz Blues Trio, 8 pm

ROCK 'N' BOWL — Contraflow, 8:30 pm TIPITINA'S — Dragon Smoke - Ivan Neville, Eric Lindell, Stanton Moore & Robert Mercurio, 8 pm

SATURDAY 9 BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Klezmer Allstars + Alex McMurray Band, 9 pm BLUE NILE — George Brown Band, 8 pm BROADSIDE — Bulbancha Bluegrass & Old Time Festival w/Bogue Chitto, The Tanglers, Nokosee Fields, Ryan Nickerson and more, 3 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Sierra Green and the Soul Machine, 10 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Mark Mullins & Friends, 8 pm DOS JEFES — Sunpie & The Louisiana Sunspots, 9 pm LE BON TEMPS ROULE — The Talismen, 11 pm; Dartmouth Dodecaphonics, 9 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — Johnny Sketch & The Dirty Notes, 8 pm; Soul Brass Band, 11 pm PIROGUE’S WHISKEY BAYOU — Joey Houck Band, 8 pm ROCK 'N' BOWL — Lost in the Sixties, 8:30 pm THE GOAT — Alabama Thunderp*ssy, Suplecs, Garguts, 8 pm TIPITINA'S — Tank and the Bangas + DJ Zeus, 8 pm

Klezmer Allstars play BJ’s Saturday the 9th FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL RILEY

TOULOUSE THEATRE — Couches feat.

Maggie Koerner, 8 pm ZONY MASH BEER PROJECT — Jon Cleary and the Absolute Gentlemen, 8 pm

SUNDAY 10 BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Big Jon and the Excellos, 8 pm BLUE NILE — The Baked Potatoes, 8 pm; Street Legends Brass Band, 10:30 pm BOURBON STREET HONKY TONK — The Bad Sandys, 8 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Vegas Cola, 9 pm JAEGER'S SEAFOOD AND OYSTER HOUSE — The Generators, 4 pm NOLA BREWING TAPROOM — Sean Riley, 3 pm ST. TIMOTHY ON THE NORTHSHORE — Christmas on the Northshore, 3 & 7 pm THE RABBIT HOLE — Ryan Scott Long, Mike Sopko, Chris Senac, 3 pm

SCAN FOR THE COMPLETE GAMBIT CALENDAR

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THE SOUL REBELS ON GENRES COLLIDING

BY JAKE CLAPP

IN THE EARLY 1990S, BASS DRUMMER DERRICK MOSS, SNARE DRUMMER LUMAR LEBL ANC AND OTHER MEMBERS of the

Young Olympia Brass Band decided to split off to form a new brass band: The Soul Rebels. They wanted to blend in more of the music they were listening to on the radio, including funk and, most importantly, hip-hop.

As hip-hop took hold in New Orleans in the ’80s, it naturally began to influence the city’s young musicians, who began to incorporate the new sounds coming from the East and West Coasts. Both Black music-rooted styles originating in the streets, it was only a matter of time before hip-hop and brass band music came together.

Deff Generation in 1991 mixed the two styles on its song “Running with the Second Line,” but it was The Soul Rebels that firmly blended the genres on their 1994 debut “Let Your Mind Be Free.”

In its more than 30 years, The Soul Rebels have come full circle and now perform with many of the acts that inspired the band, like Rakim, Slick Rick and Melle Mel. They headlined Jazz Fest in 2017 with Nas and returned to the Congo Square Stage earlier this year with the Wu-Tang Clan. The band also has played with DMX, Black Star, The Roots’ Black Thought and Joey Bada$$.

Today, along with Moss and LeBlanc, The Soul Rebels include trumpeters Marcus Hubbard and Julian Gosin, trombonists Corey Peyton and Paul Robertson, saxophonist Erion Williams and sousaphonist Manuel Perkins Jr. The band’s latest album is 2019’s “Poetry in Motion.”

Gambit spoke with Hubbard, who joined The Soul Rebels in 1998, and Perkins, who joined in 2017, about merging hip-hop and brass band music and Master P’s influence on the music industry.

This Q&A is part of a series of interviews about New Orleans as hip-hop celebrates its 50th anniversary. Read more at gambitweekly.com.

What was your introduction to hip-hop?

Marcus Hubbard: The first artist that I actually fell in love with was Eric B. & Rakim. When I saw them on TV with the gold chains and eight-ball jackets, the leather jackets and stuff, that was my first time ever seeing hip-hop artists with that kind of flair. Before that you had Whodini and the rest of the guys, but when I saw Eric B., I liked his flow and everything about him.

My first tape that I bought was the (Eric B. & Rakim) “Paid In Full” record.

And then the other one I had was Big Daddy Kane. So we were lucky to [play with] both of those guys on one night in New York.

I was around when the gangsta rap first was hitting. NWA first dropped, that was when you first heard those aggressive tones on the record. You had Black Power stuff with Public Enemy, but the real aggressive stuff, that was the first time you heard that.

NWA, Ice-T, all those guys I was listening to when they first came out.

Manuel Perkins Jr.: My introduction was actually New Orleans artists on Cash Money Records and No Limit. This was when those guys were making the airwaves and being introduced in the mainstream media at that time.

Who were the first New Orleans artists that y’all admired?

Perkins: At the time, I think Master P, because he was the top guy at the time that was coming out of New Orleans as far as airwaves and the hiphop sound that was coming out down here. And shortly after that, you have Cash Money with their whole entourage that was introducing their sound.

It was pretty much a collection of what Master P’s camp and Cash Money’s camp were doing. It was just very cool.

Hubbard: My first hip-hop song was Gregory D and Mannie Fresh,

The Soul Rebels PROVIDED PHOTO BY LOUIS BROWNE

“Buck Jump Time.” That was the first song we heard on the radio, and it just had so much energy. I was there when bounce first came, and we heard T. Tucker and DJ Irv doing their thing.

You had a lot of people from New Orleans: Ghetto Twiinz, Tim Smooth, bounce rappers like Cheeky Blakk and Katey Red. I was in the era when bounce first dropped, so Jubilee.

Everybody when I was in high school had dance teams. It was a bunch of dance crews going to different talent shows and going to different dances.

You’d wear your uniforms, and you represented whatever school you was with. Every school had a dance team.

It was fun, man. It wasn’t about all the violence and stuff you had going on during that time. Bounce music was one of the things that brought good feelings to everybody.

What do you think makes hip-hop and brass band music work so well together, both musically and also culturally?

Hubbard: Both of them emerged from the streets. Brass band music is a combination of different Caribbean sounds mixing with the European instruments, and it was something that was basically organic from the street. It was something that was supported by the streets first. And that’s

kind of how hip-hop originated: guys just DJing in the square.

At first, with hip-hop it was all about the DJs, and most of the emcees were just guys they consider like hypemen who’d just bring a little extra energy. But then the roles completely reversed. The emcee is the front, and the DJ is in the back.

For us, growing up in that time when hip-hop was becoming really big, that was music that we were listening to, but living in New Orleans, brass band and jazz and everything is all at the forefront. You couldn’t run away from it. It was something that you listened to every day. But our music peers, the hip-hop artists we grew up with — it’s kind of natural that you wanted to do that, too.

The way we always looked at it is: Hip-hop is based on using old jazz and funk records and scratching up jazz records and sampling different old music. So for us, it was kind of a natural merge, because the horns and things that you’re sampling, that’s what we do. For us, it’s instead of having a DJ doing the scratching, it was a natural merging of the horns and making a live scene.

I think it is opening the eyes of a lot of rappers. They’ve heard a lot of these different horn loops and stuff PAG E 3 7

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like that, but to hear a horn section play it [is powerful]. The thing about us is we’re acoustic. It’s different between having keyboards and guitars and stuff like that — you can hear that pretty much anywhere in the world. But you get to hear us do it with the natural, organic horns. It makes it much better. And I think it’s given them something fresh and new to observe.

Perkins: Hip-hop originated with beats that were [originally] played by horn players and musicians, so it’s just a culmination of going back to the roots and having that live instrumentation. The DJs were sampling records with horns on the beat, drums, and they were making their mixes from instrumental songs. We’re bringing the instrumentalist style back to the forefront.

What has been New Orleans’ most significant contribution to hip-hop?

Perkins: That you can actually do it independently. That you don’t necessarily need labels all of the time.

Master P showed that with his company.

The labels weren’t trying to give him any money to fund their product, and the money that some of the labels were trying to give him, he didn’t feel as though it was enough, so he did it independently.

He showed the world that you can do it, and you can have so many different records being played in so many different places at one time. Because if you’re making good music and you’re making a good product, people are going to gravitate toward it.

Hubbard: I agree. I feel that Master P is the main one that shows that betting on yourself can be real beneficial.

A lot of people had labels back then, but they were cool with letting major labels control everything. But I think Master P was the first artist that realized what his worth was. He felt like, “I’m able to make records and push records myself. All I need is somebody to be able to put it into places that I can’t put it into.”

He had to put up a lot of his money.

You get people that’s willing to do it now, but before [Master P], a lot of people were scared to do that. People weren’t putting up their own money to fund a whole project.

That’s one thing I think New Orleans hip-hop doesn’t get credit for: the business side. We added a lot to the mindset of how to think about doing this stuff and what’s possible even if you do it yourself.

I think part of it is just being from [New Orleans]. We always feel like, if

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we want anything, we’ve got to do it ourselves. We don’t have major record labels and stuff in New Orleans, so a lot of stuff, you have to do for yourself. You start learning that a lot of this we can do ourselves, so we don’t really need to be giving somebody 30% or 40% for something we can do ourselves.

Do you feel New Orleans hip-hop gets the respect it deserves?

Hubbard: I think at times. You have moments. One thing about it, guys respect Master P for his business side. So you won’t get guys who say, “Oh no, that wasn’t nothing.” And then you had Cash Money basically come right after that. So we had two major labels come out of New Orleans.

One thing about it, though, we don’t really have any major labels besides that. So I can understand why some of the respect is not given to the level that we really think it [should be].

A lot of our music, too, is based on having fun. You got a whole bunch of different genres, trap, gangsta rap, and all kinds of different stuff out here. Our music is true to what New Orleans is, which is about having fun.

So some people might consider that bubblegum rap or something like that.

But it all has its place. The crazy part about it is you have bounce music, but all crunk music is is a different version of that. It’s about turning the club up.

It’s basically the same thing when it comes to us.

I think that helps us, too, as far as a brass band. We’re built on being able to interact with the crowd, which is basically kind of what hip-hop is. It’s a give-and-take between the crowd and the band. A lot of it was kind of a natural thing. The crowd response, the chants, that’s in New Orleans music. That’s coming from the music we made with Native Americans.

Chanting is natural to New Orleans, that’s why you get bounce music, when you tell the crowd to say something and they say omething, that’s a natural thing for us. That’s how the slaves interacted with each other. So for us, it’s just a natural thing.

Music is supposed to be free.

There’s no limits to what you can do. That’s all jazz is. Improvisation.

Whatever you feel, do it. By us having so much freedom to do so much with music, that’s why we’re able to come up with a lot of stuff and fit into spaces that a lot of people can’t play

in. That’s one thing that helps Soul Rebels. When we go play with these different artists — we’re playing with hip-hop artists, we’re playing with heavy metal artists, we’re playing with funk artists — we’re able to do that because, naturally, we feel like if it’s music, there’s a place for us.

What has hip-hop come to mean to you?

Perkins: It’s a lifestyle. So many different elements that go into it, from the vernacular that some people use to the way that they dress to some of the things that they do within their lifestyle, all of it has been influenced by hip-hop in some way, shape or form. Yes, it derives from other forms of music, but hip-hop basically comes to the forefront to be like, “OK, we’re the new front runner of the music industry, and we want everyone to follow us.”

Whether it be bubblegum rap, gangsta rap, trap rap, feel-good hip-hop, go-go hip-hop, all of these different subgenres has gotten everybody on board in some way. It may only be a handful of songs that you like, but you can pick at least one song from any of these subgenres and be like “I really like this song,” and it has changed people just by listening to that song.

It’s amazing just to see what it has done to the human soul. I’m pretty sure you guys can remember at the beginning everybody thought hip-hop wouldn’t last and things like that, but it is here, 50 years and still growing and still being strong every day

The Soul Rebels backed Wu-Tang Clan at Jazz Fest 2023.

PHOTO BY DAVID GRUNFELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

Hubbard: One thing about hip-hop that’s helped it last this long is it’s always reinventing itself. It’s never just been one thing. It starts out with The Sugarhill Gang, and it goes into your Kurtis Blows and Rakims, and then it goes into your gangsta rap and it goes into your Tribe Called Quests.

No matter what background you come from, there’s a form of hip-hop that you can relate to, and that’s the thing I like about it. Hip-hop is always open to new changes.

It’s a culture. The music is a part of it, but [hip-hop] controls how people dress. It controls how people think.

You see the mindset of coming from nothing and becoming something. It’s been proven in hip-hop that you can do that. It’s provided education for kids. It’s done so much.

It has been here for 50 years, and it’s definitely set up to be here another 50 years. Whatever comes down the pipe, hip-hop is going to find a way to weave itself into it and show you that we can be in this space, too.

That’s the fun part about it: the journey. Just seeing where hip-hop came from, from being just a DJ with a turntable in the courtyard of a project, to now you see it at the Super Bowl, you see it all overseas. No matter where you go in the world, there’s people who are fans of hip-hop. That’s amazing to see.

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GOING OUT

Spirited women

by Will Coviello WHEN MELANGE DANCE COMPANY FOUNDER MONICA ORDONEZ set out to

DEBBIE FLEMING CAFFERY IN LIGHT OF EVERYTHING ON VIEW THROUGH MARCH 3

Debbie Fleming Caffery, American, born 1948, Sunset Burning Sugar Cane, 2001, Gelatin silver print, Museum purchase, 2013.1.115

explore the lives of famous and notorious women connected to Storyville and New Orleans history, she took inspiration from the city’s popular ghost tours and used the idea of ghost stories to frame the vignettes. The resulting “Fantomes” included pieces about Storyville brothel owners Josie Arlington and May Bailey and others.

When she decided to expand and update the work for a run at Le Petit Theatre, she was told about one of its ghost stories.

“Caroline was an actress having an affair,” Ordonez says. “She fell in the courtyard which is now part of Tableau. We don’t know if she fell or if she was pushed.”

Ordonez ended up preparing her company for the unexpected.

“When I went in the space for the first time, I was told that I needed to tell Caroline about my intentions,” Ordonez says. “I am bracing all the dancers for when we get in there.”

“Fantomes: Deux” runs Dec. 8-10 at Le Petit Theatre. It features a troupe of more than 15 dancers and live music

by Gabrielle Cavassa, ranging from early jazz tunes popular in Storyville to modern jazz by Cecile McLorin Salvant, and an original by Cavassa. At times, Cavassa also serves as narrator, and dancers sing in some pieces.

In the vignette about Le Petit, Ordonez chose not to have a dancer represent Caroline. The piece makes use of video projections and lights to invoke or welcome her presence.

The rest of the dances are far more visceral. One of the new pieces is about Bricktop, a woman who worked as a prostitute on the rough blocks of Gallatin Street, roughly where the French Market is now. She had a reputation for violence and was known to carry a knife. She was sent to prison for murdering her husband, himself a fearsome figure who had lost part of his arm and carried a ball and chain in place of the missing hand.

Bricktop managed to get out of jail, and promptly disappeared.

Ordonez went in a wild vein with the choreography for the piece and chose music to match.

PROVIDED PHOTO BY KRISTINA GANSSLE

‘It’s called ‘The Naked Dance,’ ” she says. “It was played in brothels in Storyville. It’s all instrumental. It’s piano that starts off slow and sultry and progressively gets wild and crazy.”

While Josie Arlington became rich running bordellos in Storyville, the piece about her is not about the sex trade.

Instead, it’s about misdeeds following her death. Arlington had purchased a large tomb for herself in Metairie Cemetery, but not long after she was buried her family began fighting over her estate. The tomb was sold and her remains moved. Not surprisingly, there is a ghost story attached to the tale.

“The legend is that she’s wandering the cemetery looking for a place to rest,” Ordonez says.

Other figures in “Fantomes: Deux” include the Casket Girls, Marie Laveau and Julie, a woman of color who was involved with a Frenchman via the placage system. According to the legend, Julie died trying to prove her love for the man.

Ordonez was intrigued by many of the women’s wild lives, but also how they confronted their conditions.

“It’s about what these women were able to do with the limited opportunities available at the time,” she says.

While she’s stuck mostly to choreographing works for Melange in recent years, she does step onstage for a small role in the piece about Marguerite O’Donnell, known as the “witch of the French Opera House,” who killed herself after she was betrayed by the man she loved.

“He took advantage of her and cheated on her with a streetwalker, who is me, by the way,” Ordonez says with a laugh. “I have to play the other woman.”

For tickets and information, visit melangedanceofnola.com.

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ANSWERS FOR LAST ISSUE’S PUZZLE: P 2

PUZZLES

ACROSS 1 Slogan 6 Like horses offered for breeding 12 “You played well!”

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