We’ve got your weekend: In and out of the parades

Toups South, where they are holding prefix dinners every third Thursday. (Photo provided by: Toups South)

Wednesday, February 20/Glitter Box N.O. (1109 Royal Street): We tell stories every day of our lives, but there is one story that deserves a spotlight (and bottles of champagne), but also gets left in the dark. Your birthing story. Well, get ready to give birth to that story because The Birth Sharing Circle is a series for pregnant parents, new parents, and birth workers to come together in the vital act of sharing space and stories. This is the third meet-up in an ongoing series where folks will have the opportunity to exchange experiences and resources, giving to one another so that everyone can  grow stronger,  healthier, and know what the hell to expect. The Birth Sharing Circle begins at 10:00 AM and goes until 11:00 AM. For more information, you can check out their event page her

Thursday, February 21/Toups South exhibition kitchen (1504 Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard): One of the best parts of living in New Orleans is that we know our chefs. Toups is taking that a step further with their Third Thursday dinners.  Held exclusively at the restaurant’s exhibition kitchen counter, guests get four courses of  southern regional cuisine, while interacting with Chef Toups and his team. For this coming Thursday, here is what’s on the menu: “Nonna’s Family Dinner,” a collaborative dinner with Toups South Chef de Cuisine Jason Lambert and Toups Meatery Chef de Cuisine Courtney Hellenschmidt. Italian specialties – just like Grandma used to make – include Eggplant Lasagna; Spaghetti alla Puttanesca; and Sunday Stew (meatballs, sausage, stewed shank, etc. with Sunday ragu). The dinner is priced at $50 per person (excluding beverages, tax, and gratuity). And, remember, they are doing these prefix dinners every third Thursday. You can check out their event page for more details. 

Thursday, February 21/Studio Be (2941 Royal Street): One Book One New Orleans will kick off their 2019 series of free public events  at Studio Be with a panel discussion on “Literacy as a Tool to Combat Incarceration.”  From 6:00-8:00 PM, the panelists — Charmel Gaulden, Vice President of Public Safety Grants at Baptist Community Ministries, Sarah Omojola, founder of The Welcoming Project, Susannah Rosenthal, collective member of Louisiana Books 2 Prisoners, and Dr. Jerry Ward, retired Richard Wright scholar currently working with inmates to prepare them for the HiSET exam — will be talking about how to use literacy in a way that combats incarceration. The evening will begin with a short reading by Zachary Lazar, author of their 2019 selection, Vengeance. This event is free, open to the public, and reading is amazing! You can find out more information on their event page. 

Friday, February 22/Piazza D’Italia (377 Poydras Street): The Virtual Krewe of Vaporwave, with a big assist from the Arts Council of New Orleans, presents Oedipus Max: A Vaporwave Rock Opera in the Piazza D’Italia. It’s a ball… it’s an opera… it’s a party… it’s all of the things. You can join the pseudo-secret artists (I mean, we’re talking about them here, but they’re known to be secretive) of Virtual Krewe of Vaporwave as they light up the Piazza D’Italia with their three-act, extremely loud, projection-mapped Rock Opera, Oedipus Max. Multiple performance stages, two cinema projectors, a lot of projectors, a 48-screen LED video trailer, surround sound, a giant face, and something called a “Laser Libretto” will be there, and so can you. The show begins at 6:00 PM, tickets will cost you $20, and you can find out full details here. 

Saturday, February 23/Uptown: Parades, people! Parades! We’ve got parades, and here’s the lineup: Krewe of Pontchartrain (1:00 PM), Krewe of Choctaw (follows), and Krewe of Freret (follows). Then go get some water and maybe some carbs because then it starts back up again with: Krewe of Sparta (5:30) and the Krewe of Pygmalion (follows). 

Saturday, February 23/Saturn Bar (3067 St. Claude): If you missed the last “No Diggity” dance party last month, then you can dig (wink wink) yourself out of that hole again this coming Saturday. Saturn Bar will again be hosting the 90/00s dance party that last time had R. Kelly boo’d off the turntable and Destiny’s Child booming from the speakers. The night begins at 10:00 and goes until 3:00 AM! Imagine all the songs you can grind to in that time! There is no cover charge, and for full details, you can check out their event page here. 

Sunday, February 24/French Quarter and Uptown: Parades, people! More parades! Here’s the lineup for Sunday: In the French Quarter we have Krewe of Barkus (woof!) at 2:00 PM. In Uptown we’ve got The Mystic Krewe of Femme Fatale (11:00 AM), Krewe of Carrolton (follows), Krewe of King Arthur (follows), and Krewe of Alla.