We’ve got your weekend: Get with the girls and drink to good causes

Jan 31, 2023 • Events

Festigals. (Photo from: Clark Castle [Schulkens])

Editor’s Note: Bourbon street, like New Orleans, is a place like no other. Anything goes in this iconic street; it has often been referred to as “the life of a party town” and “a place for revelry of all sorts”. It appears as if even the most erratic behaviors are legal there. In Bourbon Street partygoers have liberties like open-container drinking and public nudity, which are illegal everywhere else. The street has a never-ending selection of bars and restaurants with different music genres and themes that cater to even the most unique of tastes. The liberties allowed on Bourbon Street often bring to mind the question of “How is this legal?” and have given New Orleans a wild reputation. Famous musicians like Mannie Fresh attest to this reputation saying, “When a lot of people are calling it a night at 2 AM, New Orleans is coming alive,” comments such as these have made New Orleans nightlife iconic. People travel across the country to come let loose and lose their inhibitions in Bourbon Street, especially during Mardi Gras when the city sees an influx of approximately 1.4 million people. The party reputation of New Orleans and the spotlight placed has brought many benefits like tourism to the state but has also resulted in a lack of attention towards more serious issues. New Orleans has deeply entrenched issues regarding its prison system and inequalities with race. Preoccupying stories about how women in the Orleans parish prison can get sterilized to reduce their prison sentence and how prison labor is comparable to slavery don’t get half the attention of stories about the best bars in Bourbon. It would be useful to open people’s eyes to the realities of New Orleans and give attention to the issues that need resolving shifting from people asking, “How is this legal?” to “How is this not illegal?”. This piece was originally published on June 19, 2019.

Thursday, June 20/Nostalgia Purgatory (8131 Plum Street):Ready to get personal, New Orleans? Because Broken Bone Bathtub (BBB) is about to make it personal. BBB is an immersive theatre project taking place inside a bathtub, in an actual home. After a serious bike accident, a young woman musters up the courage to ask for help, and shares her story, exploring themes of trauma, suffering, human generosity and connection. The audience takes on the role of Siobhan’s close friends; not only listening but sharing in their experiences, and assisting the cast-clad artist in the actual ritual of taking a bath. The production is running for the entire weekend with various dates. You can get tickets here as well as find out full details on their event page.

Friday, June 21/Contemporary Arts Center (900 Camp Street): To help with the summer heat, theaters all over the city are bringing you inside and to other worlds. On Friday, the CAC will take you on the shore of the Pacific Ocean in Chile where a young architect, who narrates this voyage, returns to the landscapes that are close to her heart. Here, she says, “where time becomes poetic,” is the land of Amereida, a poem written in Tierra del Fuego in 1967 that celebrates the new origin of America. The documentary is an architectural exploration to reveal a foreign territory where habitable space becomes poetic concept: a space where architecture re-creates the links between human beings and the world; a gentle voyage through the lands of Latin America. The film begins at 8:45 PM, and you can find tickets and more information on their event page.

Friday, June 21/Jung Hotel (1500 Canal Street): FestiGals, the New Orleans festival that inspires, connects and celebrates women while supporting causes important to their well-being, is having their ninth annual women-centric event this weekend. FestiGals kicks off Friday, June 21, as hundreds of ladies celebrate the first annual Hats Off Luncheon, where The Bigger The Hat – The Bigger The Heart, featuring fancy hats of every size and shape as part of saluting exceptional women in the community. FestiGals weekend will also feature celebrated speakers and presenters in various breakout sessions as they share their stories of success with their businesses and in their own personal lives as wives, mothers and sisters. For a full look at the schedule as well as information about joining, you can check out their website.

Saturday, June 22/Magazine Merchant House (1150 Magazine Street): On Saturday you can join over 50 New Orleans Chefs and bartenders, including Bronwen Wyatt of Bacchanal; Kelly Fields of Willa Jean; Nina Compton of Compere Lapin; Kristen Essig of Coquette; Megan Forman of Gracious Bakery; Liz Hollinger and Jess Tiedman Stokes of Molly’s Rise and Shine, and a ton more for ‘Just Cause – a Boozy Bake Sale for Reproductive Rights.’ 100% of the proceeds for the eats you eats and the drinks you drink will go to Planned Parenthood Gulf South and The New Orleans Abortion Fund. For full details on the event, you can check out their event page here.

Sunday, June 23/Bywater American Bistro (2900 Chartres Street): There’s nothing better than a summer cocktail, and Bywater American Bistro (BABs), the award-winning eatery from James Beard “Best Chef: South” Nina Compton and Chef/Partner Levi Raines, is kicking off the 2^ndannual Summer Guest Bartender Series. BABs Head Bartender Crystal Pavlas will welcome Ajax Kentish behind the bar for an evening of creative cocktails and conversation. For one night only, cocktail enthusiasts can indulge in summer-inspired libations by Kentish, a London native who has worked in venues across Europe and America for over 14 years. It all begins at 8:00 PM (although happy hour begins at 5:00 PM on Wednesdays-Sunday), and you can find out full details on their website.

Monday, June 24/The Lafitte Greenway (2101 St. Louis Street): If you haven’t gotten your sweat on yet this summer (who are we kidding), we have the perfect opportunity to pour out all of your insides. Friends of the Lafitte Greenway are putting on 12 weeks of free, all-levels, body positive outdoor yoga on the Greenway. That’s right, 12 weeks of moving, stretching, sweating, breathing, and sweating. All you need to bring is a friend (okay, that’s optional), water, and a towel. Also, this series is rain or shine. In the event of rain, yoga will move to the covered patio at Greenway Apartments, 2606 St. Louis St. (at Dorgenois). For full details on the event, you can check out their event page here.

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