We’ve got your weekend: Brunch, benefits, balls, and a whole bunch of music

It’s a sad day when crawfish season is over, but it’s not over yet. (Photo: Wiki Commons)

Wednesday, May 1/NOLA Brewing Tap Room (3001 Tchoupitoulas Street): We know that all good things must end, and we know this also applies to crawfish season, so why not go out with a bang (or claw?)? In other words, let’s make these crawfish cosmic. What does that mean? We don’t know, but you can find out on Wednesday at Nola Tap Room because they are hosting a “Cosmic Crawfish Ball,” which they say will be an epic celebration of music, crawfish, and culture in New Orleans! There’s a full line-up of music, which you can check out here.  It all begins at 1:00 PM, and tickets are $25 (early bird), $35 (general), or  $45 (at the door). For full details, check out their event page. 

Wednesday, May 1/Music Box Village (4557 N. Rampart): New Orleans Airlift is hosting a special film screening during the 50th anniverary of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival to pay homage to Louisiana culture-bearers in the worlds of dance and trail-riding. They will be screening Creole Cowboys and Buckjumping. In Creole Cowboys, Tabitha Denholm shines a light on Louisiana’s R&B-infused zydeco trail-riding culture. Lily Keber’s Buckjumping is a joyous celebration of New Orleans’ homegrown dance styles and self-expression. After the screening, they will turn things over to a dance party in the Music Box Village with Kings of Brass. The doors open at 7:00 PM with screening taking place from 8:00-10:00 PM. Tickets will run you $17, which you can purchase here. 

Friday, May 3/Tigermen Den (3113 Royal Street): Our favorite country Gal, Gal Holiday and the Honkey Tonk Revue, will have you scuffing up those pretty hardwood floors to the Tigermen Den on Friday. Gal will be putting on a concert for us early birders who like to get out, get dancing, and get to bed. The show begins at 7:00 PM and goes until 9:30 PM. There’s no mention of tickets, but we love to support local musicians, so bring your bills just in case. For full details on this show, you can check out their event page here. 

Saturday, May 4/Bell Artspace Campus (2111 Dumaine Street): Are you into brunch and giving back? Well, good. Then, Saturday will be a joyous morning for you because Make Music NOLA (MMN) is hosting a Pre-Jazz Fest Brunch in their new home at the Bell ArtSpace Campus.  In addition to enjoying brunch, attendees will have the opportunity to visit Make Music NOLA’s new Saturday classes, which have expanded to include orchestra, fiddle class, music theory classes, and chamber ensemble. Tickets will run you $20, and that gets you brunch catered by Robert Fresh Market, Martin Wine Cellar, and Urban South Brewery, and an opportunity to visit the programs. It all begins at 10:00 AM, and for tickets and full details, you can visit their website here. 

Saturday, May 4/The Sugar Mill (1021 Convention Center Blvd.): It seems that May is the unofficial “ball” month because The Sugar Ball is also on the calendar for this weekend. Beginning at 9:00 PM, there will be a lineup of  music, including Tank & The Bangas “Green Balloon” Record Release Party with co-headliner St. Paul & The Broken Bones, plus Sweet Crude and Valerie Sassyfras. Also, this show is the only chance to see St. Paul & The Broken Bones during Jazz Fest now that their other live show at Tipitina’s is sold out, and it’s Tank & the Bangas only night time appearance during the 2 weekends of Jazz Fest. There are a limited number of $40 (general admission) tickets as well as $150 VIP tickets. Both are available here.

Sunday, May 5/St. Louis Cathedral (615 Pere Antoine Alley): New Orleans knows about cathedrals, and fires, and the French, and rebuilding, so when the  fire that broke out at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on April 15, New Orleans wanted to be part of the recovery and rebuild. The French Embassy in the United States has organized a series of concerts in New York City, Washington DC, San Francisco, and they are finishing in New Orleans on May 5. The program will feature Emmanuel Culcasi, Organist in residence at the St. Louis cathedral, who recently played several pieces at Notre-Dame de Paris. He will perform organ works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Marcel Dupré and Louis Vierne. The event will be free and open to all (no reservation required), with a freewill offering to benefit the
rebuilding and restoration of Notre-Dame de Paris. The concert begins at 3:30 PM. 

Sunday, May 5/ Second Line Brewing (433 N Bernadotte Street): It has long been the case that late night options abound for the New Orleans Fest-er’s interested in extracurriculars. But what about the ‘morning people’, the early risers, the brunch lovers who could use a pre-fest fuel up? Enter BreakFest, “The Most Important Meal of The Year!” The event is a combination of local music, yoga, brunch, coffee, and kombucha (and newspapers!) to give the patrons a chance to enjoy a morning event before a big day of music.  The Brewery’s BreakFest-ive offering for the event is a ‘beermosa’ concocted from a Second Line brew made with sauvignon blanc grapes to replace the champagne. Not to be outdone, a slew of the city’s breakfast purveyors will be providing an impressive continental breakfast including HEY Cafe, Monkey Monkey Coffee and Tea, Big Easy Bucha, Wayfare, The Station Coffee & Bakery, Shake Sugary, Laurel Street Bakery, and Louisiana Love It. It all begins at 9:00 AM, and there is a host of music, food, and even yoga. Tickets are $25/$35, and you can purchase them here.