Country Roads Magazine "The Holiday Traditions Issue" December 2022

Events

11

‘TIS

THE SEASON

A guide to more Santa sightings and tree lightings than you can shake a stocking at

To infinity, and beyond by James Fox-Smith

Features

LIGHT THE LEVEES

For a century, riverside Louisianans have spent December building bonfires by Kelsey Villeret

38

40

RÉVEILLON (R)EVOLUTION

A French Catholic tradition is modernized through a magical marketing scheme by Alexandra Kennon

WHO BRINGS YOUR ÉTRENNES?

The mysterious characters of Cajun New Years Eve by Jordan LaHaye Fontenot

On the Cover

KEEPING THE FIRES BURNING

We live in a place sustained by tradition. It’s what connects each of us to our an cestors, to our cultures—and in the brilliant diversity of Louisiana’s mixing pot, tradition offers an avenue to celebrate the things that separate us from the rest of the world, as well as a practice of preserving them. Boone Clemens man ages to capture so much of this sentiment in the photograph we’ve chosen for our December cover—a vision of warmth, community, craftsmanship, and celebration surrounding a tradition that’s been practiced for genera tions: the River Parish’s Christmas Eve bonfires (page 36). In considering the best way to close out the 39th volume of Country , the prompt of “Traditions” for this final issue of 2022 seemed so rich in possibility—particularly around the context of the holidays, and all the magic they inspire. Our features section in this issue spotlights three distinctly Louisiana holiday traditions—a festival, a feast, and a folktale. Each has elusive origins, but is understood to be at least a century old. And each survives, sustained by the excitement and wonder inspired by treasured things handed down from one generation to the next. However you celebrate this holiday season, know that we at Country Roads are hon ored to be a part of your traditions this year, and for many years to come.

Escapes

Publisher James Fox-Smith Associate Publisher Ashley Fox-Smith

Managing Editor Jordan LaHaye Fontenot Arts & Entertainment Editor Alexandra Kennon Creative Director Kourtney Zimmerman

Contributors: Ed Cullen, Suzanne Ferrara, April Hamilton, Robert Montenegro, Amanda Ogle, Chris Turner-Neal, Kelsey Villeret

Cover Artist Boone Clemens Advertising SALES@COUNTRYROADSMAG.COM Sales Team Heather Gammill & Heather Gibbons Advertising Coordinator Jen de Mers Raney

President Dorcas Woods Brown

Country Roads Magazine

758 Saint Charles Street Baton Rouge, LA 70802 Phone (225) 343-3714 Fax (815) 550-2272

‘NANAS & NEW ORLEANS

Brennan’s connections to bananas go beyond the flambé.

by Amanda Ogle

THE IRON HORSE

A new restaurant in Jackson reignites small town passions. by April Hamilton.

49

48 44

THE BLACK DOG

Finding sunlight in the dark seasons by Ed Cullen

THE READER’S WISHLIST

Six of the most compelling regional books of the year by Chris Turner-Neal

52 46

THE CALL OF THE BEAST

Duck calls made the old way by Robert Montenegro

THE GREAT RETURN

Amid a revival of SicilianLouisianan pride, descendants of Italian immigrants are making the journey home. by Suzanne Ferrara

FARMING HOLIDAY MAGIC

Finding Louisiana’s Christmas Tree by Jordan LaHaye Fontenot PERSPECTIVES

Rebecca D. Henry by Alexandra Kennon

EDITORIAL@COUNTRYROADSMAG.COM WWW.COUNTRYROADSMAG.COM

Subscriptions

$21.99 for 12 months $39.58 for 24 months

ISSN #8756-906X

Copyrighted. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in Country Roads magazine are those of the authors or columnists and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, nor do they constitute an endorsement of products or services herein. Country Roads magazine retains the right to refuse any advertisement. Country Roads cannot be responsible for delays in subscription deliveries due to U.S. Post Office handling of third-class mail.

Reflections

FROM THE PUBLISHER

It’s an hour before dawn on a late November Thursday as I write this. It’s dark outside, and freezing, which is a pity because my son, Charles, and I need to be out there in a few minutes. This being rural Louisiana, you might think that the only thing that would get a couple of dudes out of bed before dawn would be a duck hunting trip or something, but this morning we’ll be going no further than the carport, where awaits the partially-completed mother of all school construction proj ects—a trebuchet.

If you don’t know what a trebuchet is, lucky you . I didn’t either until this time last week, when Charles offhand edly mentioned that he was supposed to build one for his senior physics class. A trebuchet is one of those cat apults that were all the rage with me dieval warlords before gunpowder was invented, used to hurl heavy stones (and other, nastier things) at other people’s castles. Accurately known as a “counterweight trebuchet,” the con traption consists of a long arm that

rotates around an axle mounted high on a pyramid-shaped frame. From the short end of this arm are suspended heavy weights, while the longer (i.e. “the “business”) end holds a sling into which you load your projectile of choice. When the weighted short end is raised then released, the long arm whips around with wicked speed, launching your rock, boiling oil, hap less serf or what-have-you toward your enemy’s defenses with considerable velocity. You can see why this project would appeal to physics nerds.

To achieve full marks, class mem bers needed to build a trebuchet capable of launching a ten-pound pumpkin sixty feet or more—a feat that, according to Charles’s impene trable physics calculations, meant his catapult would need at least an eightfoot-long throwing arm, and ninety pounds of counterweight.

I’ve had to take his word for it. Be ing more of an English lit nerd, math and I have never really gotten along. But I do like building things. So last weekend, when sounds of muffled banging from the barn suggested that Charles had gotten started on his trebuchet, I went to investigate. We have more or less been at it ever

since. Of course there’s a limit to how much any parent should help a child with his homework, but trust me: as an unreconstructed English major with a math allergy that dates from early middle school, my ability to positively affect the outcome of this project has been limited to providing carpentry advice and ensuring that Charles doesn’t lose a thumb to the mitre saw. In fact, he should probably get extra points for having let his dad help, since my participation probably counts as more of a handicap than anything else.

Anyway, here we are, day of the project’a deadline, with what we be lieve to be a fully operational counter

weight trebuchet in our carport. It’s a squat, Monty Python-esque-look ing contraption that, according to Charles’s physics calculations, should be capable of hurling fall vegetables into low earth orbit. But so far the only thing we’ve managed to throw sixty feet is a tennis shoe, which is now on the roof. Due to some er ror with the release angle, anything heavier tends to get blasted into the ground ten feet in front of the trebu chet. So, this morning we need to try and resolve this by fiddling with the sling release mechanism, then get the trebuchet loaded onto the truck in time for school. Will it work? I have no idea, but it’s been a fun project that makes me wish I hadn’t given up on math so soon. Better still is the chance it has provided to spend time with my youngest child, poised as he is on the launchpad for his own journey to col lege and beyond. This Christmas— Charles’s last at home, that’s the best gift of all.

To infinity, and beyond.

—James Fox-Smith, publisher james@countryroadsmag.com

Birds of a Feather - Curating Community

Known for her energy and a sophisticated, edgy sense of style, Birds of a Feather founder Wendy Womack-Phillips has a knack for spotting fantastic finds for her eclectic St. Francisville shop. Sometimes, those discoveries come in unexpected places.

Earlier this year, Womack-Phillips was visiting local friends, Luke and Kati Williamson, when she stopped to admire Luke Williamson’s original art. A longtime attorney, Williamson says he had dabbled in painting over the years (once, after spotting an abstract painting that he loved for his office conference room, only to be dissuaded by its five-figure price tag, he painted his own instead). But recently, Williamson began a full-fledged return to painting prompted by a commitment to healthier living.

and happiness to others,” Womack-Phillips said. “Luke’s story, about getting back in touch with his creativity, is just such a great one. That’s what I want to do with Birds of a Feather—fill it with intentional items that bring meaning to peoples’ lives.”

Open since February 2021 on St. Francisville’s Commerce Street, Birds of a Feather offers a dynamic and constantly evolving collection of original art, handmade crafts, trendy and sometimes zany gifts, new and antique furnishings and consignment items. There’s something at every price point. Arranged masterfully into different subsections, this is the kind of store where a patron could while away hours, checking off items all the way down the gift list, and indulging in a little personal retail therapy, too. Womack-Phillips, forever on the hunt for unusual finds, is masterful about sourcing style-forward items that grab customers’ attention.

Consignment items are a growing focus for the store. When she first opened, consignment represented about 20% of her inventory. It continues to expand, Womack-Phillips says.

“I quit drinking recently just to live better,” Williamson said. “And it resulted in having a lot more time and creative energy. My wife and daughter gave me art supplies for Father’s Day this year, and I’ve been painting regularly since.”

Womack-Phillips loved Williamson’s paintings—abstract interpretations of landscapes and familiar landmarks including the Louisiana State Capitol and Tiger Stadium—and was inspired by the longtime St. Francisville resident’s unconventional path to creativity. In keeping with the welcoming spirit of this close-knit West Feliciana community, Birds of a Feather will host an art opening for Williamson on Thursday, December 1, during St. Francisville’s popular Vibes in the Ville outdoor concert series. The exhibition will remain on view for shoppers to see throughout the holiday season.

“I am all about selecting items that bring joy

A vintage, high fashion concho belt is just right for lovers of all things Yellowstone. How about an Hermès scarf? Or maybe a tufted aubergine couch in Mid-century modernstyle—the kind of sofa that would complete the picture for any stylish LSU fan. There are no fixed rules on what you might find in this shop, says Womack-Phillips, who spent eighteen years in the fashion industry and the furniture import business before opening Birds of a Feather.

“I have people constantly approaching me about good antiques they want to get rid of, but they don’t feel comfortable selling them on Facebook Marketplace or something like that,” Womack-Phillips says. “They just don’t want the hassle. This is another way I want this shop to be an active part of the community.”

Birds of a Feather’s lively design scheme is unconstrained by convention and anchored by Womack-Phillips daring, confident eye. The shop’s through-line, she says, is its tether to the community.

“I think of myself as a retail navigator,” Womack-Phillips says. “I’m here not just to sell things, but to provide a place that sparks connections.”

Brushstrokes from a Barn Perspective: Abstracts by Luke Williamson Exhibition & Open House: Noon–6 pm Thursday, December 1 (318) 348-6660 facebook.com/birdsofafeathersf

“I think of Birds as being a place where the motto is ‘let me help you,’ ” says WomackPhillips who offers personal shopping and interior design services, too. “Whatever you’re looking for … even if you don’t know what it is … we can help.”

Noteworthy

Fifty Cajun Christmas Eves They’re Back!

Illustration by James Rice, from the cover of The Cajun Night Before Christmas, courtesy of Pelican Press.

“And Dr. Calhoun pulled his car over, and he [said], ‘Man, that would be a great children’s book,’” Campbell explained. Calhoun reached out to J.B. Kling, Jr., who would adapt/write the text for the book from the original poem under the pseudonym “Trosclair.”

According to Campbell, illustrator James Rice had ridden his motorcycle from Texas to pitch a different book, to which Calhoun replied something along the lines of, “You know what, I don’t like your book. Can you draw an alligator?” Needless to say, Rice pro ceeded to draw “fifty different alligators in every pose possible,” which were the early templates for Gaston, the now-iconic (and trademarked) Green-Nosed Alligator. The Cajun Night Before Christmas’s initial publication fifty years ago launched Pelican’s children’s book devision, which because of this title is today Peli can’s largest segment.

These days, Campbell said, The Cajun Night Before Christmas is selling better than ever before, and it’s only increasing in popularity, especially with the internet making it easy for those out of the state to access it. “For some reason, it’s actually gaining more traction, I think because there’s so many ex-pats, you know, people who’ve had to move because of hurricanes, and jobs, and everything else,”

Campbell posited. “I think that a lot of people, you know, want to reconnect.”

He says at book signings, he frequently hears from grandparents with grandkids living outside of Louisiana in cities like Dallas, who make a point of buying them the book as a way of sharing their Louisiana heritage. “So I hear a lot of that,” Campbell said. “Because it’s important for these people to share the history and the heritage with kids and don’t grow up with it.” —Alexandra Kennon

Find the 50th Anniversary Special Edition of The Cajun Night Before Christmas in local book stores (like The Shop at The Historic New Orleans Collection or Fleurty Girl) as well as larger retail ers. Scott Campbell will also be present signing copies at the Steinhauer Christmas Extravaganza Arts & Crafts Expo in Covington December 2–4, and Helen Brett Gift & Jewelery Show in Gonza les December 9–11.

A DECADE AFTER THE PLEASURE FACTORY BURNED DOWN, HUBIG’S PIES RETURN TO NEW ORLEANS

There is a balm in Gilead. Hubig’s Pies, the hand-held fried fruit treat topping many Louisianans’ “ain’t dere no more” lists, are back in stores—sort of. At this writing, a decade of pent-up demand is combining with the final kinks in the company’s new production processes to cause bottlenecks and short ages. A catty sign to this effect on the front door of the Mid-City Rouse’s hinted at a Bole ro-like refrain: “Y’all got Hubig’s?

Nevertheless, spotty availability is way better than what Louisiana’s dessert aficionados have been used to. Hubig’s Pies—the unusual last name is Basque— began operating in Cincinnati in 1890, expanding to nine locations, mostly in the South, in the following years. The pie empire reached New Orleans in 1921, estab lishing a Marigny Rectangle factory on Dauphine. Before the Marigny became hip, the wafting smell of pastries helped landlords and real estate agents close their deals. In that same building the factory stayed, cranking out pies and outlasting its sister Hubig’s locations, as well as other New Orleans favorites: long after the last Dr. Nut was guzzled and the final K&B trans formed into a Rite-Aid, Hubig’s stayed sweet. The pies were an easy shibboleth for newcomers to pick up: literally no one in New Orleans calls the sidewalk the “banquette” anymore, if ever they did, but once you have a favorite Hubig’s flavor, you’ve arrived in the city, and all you have to do is try them all. (For me, the relatively-rare peach, with lemon as a reliable backup.)

The factory was walloped like everyone else during Katrina, though its position in the relatively high-lying Marigny meant it could have been worse. The factory’s return to pro duction in early 2006 allowed for a few bites of normalcy during those jittery months of intermittent stoplight functionality. On July 27, 2012, a fire started in the fry room, and the greasy environs helped it quickly consume the whole building. Within hours of the fire, Andrew Ramsey, a member of one of the families who owned the company, vowed a return.

It took ten years. They lost the land where the original factory sat, which now hosts a cluster of attractively anodyne condos dubbed, perhaps tastelessly, Baker’s Row. Returns were intermittently teased over the last decade, but every attempt foundered—until this one. The apparently indefatigable Ramsey has been selling pies literally as fast as his crew can make them in their new Jefferson Parish facility. After the losses of COVID, the Ka trina-like loss of both lives and the connection, rituals, and pleasures that make life worth the trouble, Hubig’s Pies are back just when we need them. hubigs.com

—Chris Turner-Neal

Photo by Chris Turner-Neal.

Never Been a Better Time for Treasure Hunting

SECRETS BENEATH THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER REVEALED BY RECEDING WATERS

The Mississippi River has always been a storyteller— carrying narratives of trade, of civilization, of adven ture; of histories remarkable and histories dreadful. Over the past month and a half, though, the River’s very lack has unveiled stories long forgotten, hidden—until now—beneath her great waters.

The drought affecting most of the continental United States this fall has wrought its effects on the river, shrink ing it back to record-low levels in several places along its two-thousand-mile path. Louisiana’s stretch is the river’s deepest point, and still—starved for runoff—the body of water has constricted farther and farther from its usual banks.

This has wrought havoc on the nation’s shipping industry (the river carries over half of the country’s grain exports alone), causing barge groundings and initiating emergency dredging operations. In New Orleans, the low river has caused concern for New Orleans’ drinking water supply as saltwater moves upstream from the Gulf.

So, we continue to pray for rain. But in the meantime, locals up and down the river have not wasted the opportu nity to take advantage of the rare access

to the Mississippi’s underbelly, and the things that she’s hidden there. Photos have emerged of people hiking the sandy dunes, more reminiscent of some West ern desert than the Southern swamps— the dried bottom of the river a mysteri ous, ephemeral playground. And, as you might expect, people have found things there—fossils, sunken ships, even hu man remains.

One of the first, and most exciting, of these discoveries was that of the Brookh ill Ferry in Baton Rouge—a night ferry that had carried traffic in between Port Allen and Baton Rouge from 1895 to 1915, when a September hurricane sank her in place. Local treasure hunter Pat rick Ford came across the boat’s corpse while hiking the banks in early October, instantly capturing the interest of local archaeologists and the imagination of Baton Rouge residents. “My first visit [to the site] was a bit of a shock to see how much of her was exposed,” said Louisi ana’s State Archaeologist Chip McGim sey of the S.S. Brookhill. “I did not antic ipate the very strong public interest that the initial TV and newspaper reports generated. I figured there would be a few curious visitors, but wasn’t expecting to see literally thousands of people make

their way down to see her.”

Since then, two more boats have emerged from the retreating waters. On October 16, five miles south from the fer ry site, eleven-year-old Boy Scout Aaron Bencaz was exploring the sandbar with his friend Jason and his dog Cash when he discovered yet another shipwreck. With a backstory more elusive than the S.S. Brookhill, the boat is believed to have been built sometime after 1880, and was likely some sort of barge. The official name of the shipwreck has been regis tered as “Aaron’s Shipwreck”. “We need the river to fall another couple of feet to really expose it,” said McGimsey.

And just down the river, the unveiling of the 1980s replica of French explor er Sieur d’Iberville’s vessel Le Pelican reminded Donaldsonville residents of a doomed tourism venture embarked upon in the early 2000s. After spending a fortune on bringing the ship, built in Canada, to South Louisiana as a tourist attraction in 2002—then having to raise it after it sank on the journey—the town had no choice but to anchor the vessel when it went under for a final time in March 2004.

Higher up in Mississippi, discover ies included the remains of Biloxi’s first

casino boat, the 1990-built Diamond Lady—with her 640 slot machines; an extremely rare ice age fossil of the Ameri can lion, which went extinct 11,000 years ago; and portions of one human skeleton, currently being studied by the Mississip pi Bureau of Investigations.

McGimsey said he is actually surprised that there haven’t been more artifacts found since the River’s recession. “I think the challenge has been that most parts of the river are really not accessible to the general public to go exploring—land is blocked off, you have to cross private land to get to the river. The two wrecks that have been found [in Baton Rouge] are lo cated in some of the few areas where the public can easily visit.”

The archaeologist expressed encour agement at the way the public has shown interest and excitement around the histo ry revealed by the things coming out of the river. “Hopefully, for everyone, but especially for the younger folks, it will spark an interest in history broadly,” he said. “This is certainly not what most people think of when they think of ar chaeology.”

—Jordan LaHaye Fontenot

THE

Photo by Chris Jay.

Photo provided by W. Bradley Ferguson Photography

NATCHEZ & VICKSBURG

November 18–December 31: The Towers’ Jeweled Christmas Tours: The Towers, has decked its halls for the season, and invites all to marvel at the splendor of the majestically-restored home. $30. thetowersofnatchez.com.

November 25–December 31: Christmas at Sunnyside Bed and Breakfast: A whimsical-meetstraditional "Do You See What I See?" home Tour. 2 pm and 5 pm. $20. visitnatchez.org.

November 26–December 25: Christmas in Natchez: Through the month of December, the city high on the Bluff celebrates the season with their grand Christmas tree on Main Street, Caroling in the Park at Memorial Park every Thursday at 5:30 pm, food trucks, carnival rides, Santa sightings, and more. christmasinnatchez.org.

December 2: The Natchez Festival of Music Presents An Elvis Christmas: The annual Christmas cabaret will

Events

Merry & Bright

present Elvis's best-selling hits at the Natchez Civic Center. 7 pm. $40. natchezfestivalofmusic.com.

December 2–3: Merry Market: Shop over one hundred craft and food vendors at the Natchez Convention Center. Friday 11 am–5 pm, Saturday 9 am–4 pm. Free. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 3: Vicksburg Christmas Parade of Lights: Vicksburg’s Christmas parade brings area clubs, churches, schools, drill teams, bands, and more to the route between Belmont Street and Jackson Street. 5 pm. Free. downtownvicksburg.org.

December 3: Holly Days Market: Vendors proudly displaying arts and crafts, performances by local artists, and more holiday spirit leading up to Vicksburg Main Street’s Annual Christmas Parade of Lights. 9 am–3 pm at the Southern Culture Heritage Foundation, 1302 Adams Street. $2. For more information, email info@southernculture.org.

December 3: Natchez Christmas Parade: The Bluff City's annual holiday parade, themed “A Storybook Christmas”. 6 pm in Downtown Natchez. Free. visitnatchez.org.

December 3: Reindeer Run 5k: The fourth-annual holiday race will benefit Paws Rescue in Vicksburg. The course begins at Catfish Row and will take participants through historic downtown Vicksburg. After the race there will be food provided by LD’s Kitchen, adult beverages, a pet parade, and reindeer games for kids. Race Day fee $35. raceroster.com.

December 10: Christmas High Tea at Magnolia Cottage: It's tea time at Magnolia Cottage Bed & Breakfast, brought to life all the more by the jingly jangly jolliness of the holidays. Enjoy a variety of seasonal teas, and an assortment of sweets and treats, tea-sandwiches, and scones. Every guest will go home with a Christmas "happy". 11 am–noon and 2 pm–3 pm. $39. magnoliacottagebandb.com. p

Our picks for small-town Christmas parades, Santa sightings, tree lightings, holiday markets & more festive fun throughout Louisiana & Mississippi.

Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre's holiday tradition The Nutcracker: A Tale from the Bayou reimagines Tchaikovsky's beloved seasonal ballet in the swamps of South Louisiana, on the River Center stage December 17 & 18. See listing on page 17. Photo by Eye Wander Photo, courtesy of BRBT.

EventsHoliday EvEnts

on tHE nortHsHorE & Cajun Coast

NORTHSHORE & CAJUN COAST

November 25–December 31: Get Wrapped Up in Mandeville: This Buy Local promotion kicks off again this year, reminding locals to support their neighbors this holiday season. Subscribe to the City of Mandeville newsletter for the most up to date information. cityofmandeville.com.

November 25–December 24: Christmas in the Country: The City of Covington and merchants of Lee Lane present their annual shopping event throughout downtown Covington, where shops will offer special shopping experiences featuring refreshments and live music. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 1–31: Victorian Christmas at Grevemberg House and Shadowlawn: Admire the Franklin home bedecked with a Victorian style tree and seasonal greenery. Closed Christmas Eve and Day, 10 am–4 pm. $12, $10 for seniors, $8 for children. (337) 828-2092.

December 2: Christmas at TerraBella: Join the folks of TerraBella Village for a

special community event kicking off the holidays, featuring an appearance from Mr. Claus, live holiday music, Christmas crafts, and the tree lighting. 6 pm–9 pm. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 2: Ponchatoula Christmas Lighting: Join the community for the annual celebration of turning on the Christmas lights in Downtown Ponchatoula. Event goers can enjoy performances from local schools, photos with Santa, hot cocoa, refreshments, late night shopping, and more. 6 pm–9 pm. Free. downtownponchatoula.com.

December 2: O Wondrous Night Northlake Performing Arts Society Chorus Concert: The community choir will perform a special holiday concert at the Christ Episcopal School Theater in Covington for two nights only. 7:30 pm Friday; 3 pm Sunday. $20 for ages thirteen and older, $5 for kids under thirteen. npassingers.org.

December 2: Sips of the Season Stroll: This Girod Street stroll is marked by a beautiful Covington evening, brightlydecorated shops and restaurants, holidaythemed craft cocktails, and plenty of

snacks. 5 pm–9 pm in Old Mandeville. oldmandevillebusiness.org.

December 2–4: Christmas Extravaganza Arts & Crafts Expo: Steinhauer Productions returns to the St. Tammany Parish Fairgrounds for one of the largest arts and crafts expos in the South. 9 am–5 pm each day. $5. steinhauerproductions.com.

December 2–10: Christmas Under the Stars in Griffith Park: Twinkling lights, festive decorations, and life-sized Christmas Cottages come together for a magical night in Slidell. 6 pm–9 pm. Free. Details on the City of Slidell Facebook Page.

December 2–10: Mandeville Holiday of Lights: This year presented as a drivethru event, the annual lights display will enlighten the St. Tammany Parish Administrative Complex grounds once again this year. 6 pm–8:30 pm. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 2–11: 30 by Ninety Theatre presents A Very Merry Christmas Spectacular: Don't miss this holiday extravaganza featuring singing, dancing, comedy, and more by local performers of all ages. 7 pm on Friday and Saturday; 2:30 pm Sunday. $29; $27 for seniors; $24 for students; $22 for children younger than twelve. 30byninety.com.

December 3: Winter on the Water Santa Street & Boat Parade: This fun family event brings the magic of the holidays to the Mandeville Lakefront, featuring Mandeville’s big annual Santa Street Parade, followed by a parade of boats bedecked for the season floating by on Lake Pontchartrain. Plus live entertainment, face painting, photos with Santa and the Grinch, and the lovely lighting of the oaks on the lakefront. Santa’s Walking Parade begins at 4 pm at Lakeshore Drive and Jackson Street, and ends at the gazebo. The boat parade follows on the lake at 5:30 pm. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 3: Candlelight Caroling at the Covington Trailhead: A magical night of sing-alongs awaits at the trailhead, featuring carols performed by the Northlake Performing Arts Society chorale. 7 pm–8:30 pm. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 3: Your Santa Breakfast: Learn more about Youth Service Bureau at this cozy holiday event, featuring hot breakfast, Christmas crafts, kiddie train rides, face painting, a special Christmas movie showing, and a visit with the big man himself—all at Lakeview Regional Medical Center (95 Judge Tanner Blvd., Covington); seating available for fifteen fifteen-minute intervals from 9 am to noon. $20. ysbworks.com/santa.

Dream without boundaries

Knowing you’ve got the strength of the cross, the protection of the shield and thousands of top doctors to lift you when you need it. The Right Card. The Right Care.

December 3: Deck the Rails at the Covington Trailhead: Enjoy Christmas caroling, craft activities, a visit from Mr. Claus, and holiday treats. 4 pm–6 pm. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 3: Merry Madisonville: Ring in the holidays at the Madisonville Park & Playground for a day of family fun featuring Santa Claus, a parade, caroling, and kids’ activities. The parade kicks off at the Lake Pontchartrain Maritime Museum and ends at St. Louis. 1 pm–8 pm. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 3: Cruisin’ the Lower Atchafalaya Christmas Boat Parade: Head to Morey Park for a celebration of the season on the water. 6 pm. Free. cajuncoast.com.

December 3–18: Playmakers, Inc. Community Theatre presents Miracle on 34th Street : This special holiday production is directed by Naomi LeeShawn O’Donnell. 7 pm Saturdays; 2 pm Sundays. $15–20. bontempstix.com. playmakersinc.com.

December 4: Olde Towne Slidell Community Christmas Parade: Greet Santa on his trek through Olde Towne, starting at City Hall and moving down to Griffith Park, where he will lead the annual lighting of the Christmas trees. 5 pm–7 pm. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 4: Covington Heritage Foundation’s History and Holly Home Tour: Tour five festively-adorned homes along a pedestrian-friendly walking route during this Northshore holiday tradition, which starts at Fuhrmann Auditorium. 2 pm–5 pm. $20 at bontempstix.com.

December 4: Q50 Races Santa on Trails 5k Run/Walk: Don your Santa suit and bring a toy for the children of the New Orleans Mission shelter for the most festive of 5ks along Lake Pontchartrain in Fountainebleu State Park. 9 am. $40 to race. ultrasignup.com.

December 4–January 8: Christmas Lights on the Bayou Teche: Cruise down Teche Drive, Main, Martin Luther King and Iberia Streets in Franklin to take in over a million lights along Parc Sur La Teche (for festive accompaniment, tune into 93.5 FM). cajuncoast.com.

December 1–10: Cutting Edge Theater presents Elf: The Musical: Buddy the Elf takes the stage. Thursday and Friday at 7 pm, 2 pm Saturday. Tickets start at $25. cuttingedgetheater.com.

December 9–18: Nutcracker Twist : An adaptation of the beloved classic ballet. slidelllittletheatre.org.

December 9–11: Festival of the Bonfires: Call it Christmas lights Cajun style, it’s a prelude to the Christmas Eve bonfires later in the month. The sparks and holiday cheer ignite Friday afternoon at

2 pm, with the festival continuing all day Saturday and Sunday at Lutcher Recreational Park. Enjoy live entertainment, great food, crafts, Santa’s Very Merry Forest, carnival rides, and more fun for the entire family. Each night of the event will also include a bonfire lighting. festivalofthebonfires.org. Read more about this tradition on page 36.

December 9: Twin Steeples’ Christmas in the Courtyard: Twin Steeples Creative Arts Center hosts this special shopping event featuring a special Nutcracker performance by Fellom Ballet Legacy, followed by candle-lit Christmas caroling. Free. 6 pm–7 pm. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 10: Sugar Plum Market: Hosted by the Junior League of Greater Covington, this inaugural Christmas shopping event will be held at the Castine Center in Mandeville. Come shop over thirty-five small businesses sure to complete your wishlists. 9 am–4 pm. $5. jlgc.net.

December 10: Ponchatoula Christmas Parade: There are plenty of small-town Christmas parades this time of year, and Ponchatoula’s is particularly charming. The parade will start at Memorial Park and travel through Downtown Ponchatoula, ending at the Ponchatoula Junior High School. Begins at 5 pm. Free. ponchatoulachamber.com.

December 10: Sweet Treats on Main Street: Ponchatoula brings back this beloved event, where visitors and locals can stroll through the streets of Downtown Ponchatoula and enjoy sweet treats while finishing up Christmas shopping along the way. Stay afterward for the Ponchatoula Christmas Parade. 2 pm–5 pm. downtownponchatoula.com.

December 10: Christmas Past Festival: Seventy-five artists and vendors, a children’s village, train rides, and Mr. Claus himself can be found on Girod Street in historic Old Mandeville. 10 am–4 pm. Free. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 10: Miracle on First Street: Explore over fifty vendors, live music, and more, on First Street in Berwick. 3 pm–8 pm. Free. cajuncoast.com.

December 10–11: Ballet Apetrei’s The Nutcracker : Experience Ballet Apetrei’s rendition of the dazzling holiday favorite at one of their performances at the Fuhrmann Auditorium this season. 2 pm & 7 pm Saturday; 2 pm Sunday. $20 at bontempstix.com. balletapetrei.net.

December 9–January 6: Covington’s 12 Days of Christmas Lighted Displays: Wander through the historic district this season seeking out the twelve lighted silhouettes depicting the larger-than-life images from the traditional Old English

Events

Holiday EvEnts

on tHE nortHsHorE, Cajun Coast & in Baton rougE

"Chistmas Carol"—from the four calling birds to the partridge in a pear tree. The displays will be lighted seven days a week from dusk to dawn. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 10: Folsom Horse & Wagon

Christmas Parade: Santa trades the sleigh for a horse-drawn wagon at this old-fashioned parade, which includes an antique tractor show, “best dressed horse and rider” contest, and “most original wagon” competition. Starts on Hwy 40 right outside of Folsom at 1 pm. Free. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 10: Breakfast with Santa: Pelican Park hosts their annual breakfast event at the Castine Center this Saturday, featuring delicious food, holiday crafts, and photos with Santa. $5 for adults and children older than ten. 9 am–11 am. Register at pelicanpark.com.

December 10: Titan Winter Arts

Showcase & Market: Local vendors, artists, and food trucks will be out in droves at Lakeshore High to promote the school’s arts programs. 10 am–5 pm. Free. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 11: Patterson Annual Christmas Street Parade: This one has all the trappings of a charming Cajun Christmas parade. 2 pm down Main Street in Patterson. Free. cajuncoast.com.

December 11: Patterson 4-Legged Friends Christmas Parade: This adorably festive pup parade rides before the big Christmas Parade. Noon. Free. cajuncoast.com.

December 16: Holi-Slay Christmas Drag Show: Catch this very festive holiday drag show at The Hideaway Den. 8 pm–11 pm. $10. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 17: Holiday Concert with Northshore Community Orchestra: Enjoy a special holiday concert presented by the Northshore Community Orchestra at the Slidell Municipal Auditorium this Sunday. 6 pm–8:30 pm. Free. louisiananorthshore.com.

December 17: Johnette Downing at Lafourche Libraries: Local delight Johnette Downing is performing special festive holiday concerts and readings of her two Louisiana-themed Christmas books, Bonfires on the Levee: A Louisiana Christmas Tradition and Mademoiselle Grands Doigts: A Cajun New Year’s Eve

Tradition. Catch her at 9:15 am at the Thibodaux Branch Library and at noon at the Lockport Branch Library. lafourche.org. Read more about the bonfires on the levee and Madame Grands Doigts traditions in our feature stories on pages 36 and 40.

December 18: Christmas Brass Spectacular: The Louisiana Brass, led by Erik Morales, will perform a selection of favorite contemporary and traditional holiday music at Christ Episcopal Church in Covington as part of the Third Sunday Concert Series. Free. 5 pm–6 pm. christchurchcovington.com.

December 15–23: Slidell’s Bayou Christmas: This annual fundraiser for the Slidell Boys & Girls Club promises ice skating, holiday light displays, entertainment, and more in the evenings at Heritage Park. 6 pm–9 pm. Free. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 20: Holiday Concert in Lafourche: Join Percussionist Elizabeth Vidos (AKA Lady Chops) and Amanda Roberts for a series of dulcimer and drums holiday concerts at Lafourche library locations, including the Cut Off Youth Center at 10 am and the Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center at 2 pm. Free. lafourche.org.

December 24: Christmas Eve Bonfires: Explore the unique tradition of the community-built bonfires along the Mississippi, set up to light the way for Papa Noël. Fires are lit at 7 pm. For driving directions on where to find the bonfires along River Road in Gramercy and Lutcher, visit lariverparishes.com/ bonfirecountry.

Read more about the tradition of the bonfires on the levee in our feature story on page 36. p

GREATER BATON ROUGE

November 10–January 12: Deck the Halls Art Show: The Art Guild of Louisiana is hosting a holiday exhibition of members’ works with the theme “Deck the Halls”, at Independence Park Theatre in Baton Rouge. artguildlouisiana.org.

November 12–December 27: ACLP Holiday Marketplace: With the change of the seasons comes more opportunities to grab gifts for your friends and family, including the Arts Council of Livingston Parish's annual Holiday Marketplace. With many different art works in various mediums, there is sure to be a wide range of possible gifts for everyone on your list. 10 am–noon Wednesday–Friday, 10 am–2 pm Saturday. Free. artslivingston.org.

November 14–January 9: Holiday Wreath Contest at the Library: Submit your most festive wreath to the Ascension Parish Library by December 9, and vote for your favorites between December 10–16. Enjoy the display until January 9. (225) 647-3955. myapl.org.

November 25–December 30: Zoolights: Generations of Capital City families have built a holiday tradition around a visit to BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo to see ZooLights—featuring more than fifty illuminated, larger-than-life displays of flamingos, giraffes, lions, tigers, gorillas, and more; and a range of festive family activities that lights up the night all month long. Many highwattage, computer-controlled displays are animated to add extra pizazz. 5:30 pm–8 pm nightly. $5 adults; $4 seniors; $3 ages two through twelve. Closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. brzoo.org.

December 1: Chamber Series Holiday Brass 2022: The full Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra brass and percussion is ready and prepped to put you in the holiday spirit in the magical environs of the St. Joseph Cathedral. 7:30 pm–9:30 pm. $30. brso.org.

December 2: LSU Museum of Art Store Holiday Shopping Event: For the eighteenth year, the LSU MOA invites

all to shop unique holiday gifts, local artwork, and more with a special deal of twenty percent off any one item, plus free gift wrap and raffle prizes. 4 pm–8 pm. lsumoa.org.

December 2: Festival of Lights at North Boulevard Town Square: Downtown Baton Rouge’s oldest holiday tradition returns to take over downtown, transforming it into a winter wonderland of lights, carols, and magic. At 6:20 pm, Mayor Broome and Santa will be leading the countdown to the lighting of the city’s twenty-five-foot Christmas tree, featuring half a million sparkling lights. Afterwards, grab a photo with the big guy in the Old State Capitol for “Santa in the Senate” from 6:30 pm–8:30 pm, try your hand (er ... feet) at ice skating in Repentance Park or swirl amongst the flurries in the Snow Village, and mingle with local vendors while searching for the perfect Christmas gift. And don’t miss the grande finale: a fireworks show over the Mississippi River. 4 pm–8 pm. downtownbatonrouge.org.

December 2–3: George Bell and Friends: An Evening of Holiday Jazz: George Bell returns to the Manship for his tenth annual holiday concert. Don’t miss this festive performance, featuring Herman Jackson, Harry Anderson, Andy Bourgeois, Ray Mouton, Greg Ward,

Betsy Braud, Hilda Trenise Gautier, and Quiana Lynell—plus a few other surprises. 7:30 pm both nights. $45. manshiptheatre.org.

December 2–4, 9–12: Christmasville Spectacular: A curated experience of all things Christmas, designed for fanatics especially craving those warm fuzzy feelings of the holidays. Start indoors at the Denham Springs First Baptist Church for a presentation of

"Welcome to Christmasville" featuring caroling and other performances, then head out to the Christmas Tree Farm courtyard, where you’ll enjoy hot cocoa and sweet Christmas treats. Then on to Christmasville Toyland, where you'll meet some friendly animals at the Farm, and catch a ride on the Toyland Express Train. It’s an experience designed to foster lifelong holiday memories for the whole family. Free. Find tickets at eventbrite.com.

toxication—but it's all for a good cause. See listing on page 19. Photo courtesy of Running of the Santas.

Events

Holiday EvEnts

in Baton rougE & nEw orlEans

December 3: Home for the Holidays Concert: The Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra will fill the River Center Theatre with holiday music from favorites like The Polar Express, The Nutcracker, and Home Alone, and invite the audience to carol and sing along. $19–$65. 2 pm–4 pm. brso.org.

December 3: Christmas in Central Parade: Don’t miss this festive celebration down Joor Road in the charming community of Central. 11 am. members.cityofcentralchamber.com.

December 3: Broadmoor Christmas Parade: A beloved tradition in Baton Rouge’s Broadmoor neighborhood, this parade features local school groups, antique cars, nonprofit organizations, and Santa Claus himself. Kicks off at noon, starting from the Broadmoor High School. broadmoor-br.org.

December 3–17: Holiday Baton Rouge Arts Market: Open alongside BREADA’s Red Stick Farmer’s Market downtown every Saturday in December prior to Christmas, this market offers gifts from over sixty artisan vendors of sculptures, textiles, woodwork, hand-made toys, and more. 8 am–noon. breada.org.

December 4: Baton Rouge Concert Band Christmas Concert: Catch the Baton Rouge Concert Band performing a medley of traditional Christmas music the likes of "Adeste Fidelis" and "Ave Maria," as well as selections from Polar Express and Henry Mancini’s music. 3 pm. Free. brcb.org.

December 4: A Rural Life Christmas: One of the capital city’s best-loved holiday traditions, LSU’s Rural Life Museum’s old-fashioned Louisiana Christmas celebration conjures up a century and a half of reminiscences on the grounds of the acclaimed museum. Candle-lit historic buildings decorated with freshly-cut greenery serve as an atmospheric backdrop for costumed re-enactors recreating the Christmas festivities of the nineteenth century. Around them, distinguished artisans perform living history demonstrations. Seasonal activities traditional to South Louisiana, such as blacksmithing, doll making, candle dipping, and rosary making, make this ghost of Christmas Past all the more evocative. Bring your gift list: lots of handmade things will be available for sale. The day’s festivities will conclude with a procession to a traditional Louisiana bonfire to await the appearance of Papa Noël. 10 am–5 pm. $10; children ten and younger free. lsu.edu/rurallife.

December 4: Light up the Holidays: The

Poydras Center in New Roads will light up for the season at this event hosted by the Arts Council of Pointe Coupee, with festive food and drinks, potential to win door prizes, and live holiday performances. For more information, reach out to Gale Roy at roygaleb@bellsouth.net or call (225) 638-6049.

December 4: West Baton Rouge Museum’s Holiday Open House: Celebrate the season with traditional activities, art, music, and storytelling—while snacking on gingerbread and hot cider. Papa Noël will make an appearance to host a game of “Find the Elves!” 2 pm–4 pm. Free. westbatonrougemuseum.com.

December 4: Baton Rouge Symphony Christmas Brass Concert: With a backdrop of the Houmas House Plantation and Gardens grounds, the Baton Rouge Symphony presents a special brass and percussion concert featuring holiday favorites and custom arrangements. 4:30 pm–6:30 pm. Tickets start at $50. houmashouse.com.

December 9–10: Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time at the Manship: Local performers Mike Esneault, Don Vappie, Keith Simoneaux, Clarence Johnson III, David Ellis, Victoria Cave, Brandy Johnson, Margaret Fowler Milam, and Ed Perkins come together on the Manship stage for a celebration of the holiday classics— especially the hits from the 1970s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. 7:30 pm both nights. $30–$45. manshiptheatre.org.

December 9–11: A Tri-Parish Nutcracker: Livingston’s local Tri–Parish Ballet again presents The Nutcracker, enchanting audiences with dancing dolls, toy soldiers, waltzing flowers and a number of new surprises for returning audiences. Guest dancers will perform as the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Cavalier, with local dancers Olivia Songy and Autumn Lloyd portraying the role of Maria alongside over fifty local dancers. Since Friday’s (7 pm) performance serves as a benefit, admission is a non-perishable food item for the Baton Rouge Food Bank and the food pantry at the First United Methodist Church of Denham Springs. On Sunday at 2 pm, admission to the full-length performance is $20. Both performances will be in the LSU Student Union Theatre. Tickets at lsuuniontheater.universitytickets.com.

December 9–11 & 15–18: Theatre

Baton Rouge’s A Christmas Carol: Some classics are timeless for a reason, and this Dickens Christmas tradition is one of them. The same characters we know and love return to the stage: miserly Ebenezer

Scrooge, and all those Christmas ghosts among them. Performances at 7:30 pm, 2 pm Sundays. $30, $25 for students and children. theatrebr.org.

December 10: Denham Springs Christmas Parade: Mardi Gras is right around the corner, and after these past two years we certainly need some practice. Use the holidays as the perfect excuse, and head to Denham for this special local tradition. Parade rolls at 2 pm, ending off Veterans in Denham Springs. Visit the Denham Springs Antique Village on Facebook for details.

December 10: Cortana Kiwanis Christmas Parade: A favorite of downtown Baton Rouge residents since 1948, this parade put on by the Cortana Kiwanis Club and the Kiwanis Club of Cortana Baton Rouge Foundation, Inc. celebrates community as the holidays descend, spotlighting local marching bands, celebrities, dance troupes, nonprofits, and local businesses. 5:30 pm. christmasinbr.com.

December 10: Jingle Bell Brunch: The newly-renovated Juban’s is hosting a cheerful holiday three-course brunch accompanied by photos with Santa, a hot chocolate bar, a cookie decorating bar, mimosas and poinsettias for the grownups, and festive decor. 10 am and 1 pm. $75–$95 at bontempstix.com.

December 10: Let It Sneaux: Santa is coming to BREC’s Perkins Road Community Park, and he is bringing all the goodies with him. Gingerbread house making, s’mores, hot chocolate, sneaux, and much more. 1 pm–5 pm. Free. brec.org.

December 10: Ascension Parish Stroll on the Square: Usher in the season with a Christmas Tree lighting in Gonzales’s Louisiana Square. Santa Claus will be in attendance, and there will be shopping, plus food and beverages and fun for all ages. 6 pm–10 pm. visitlasweetspot.com.

December 13: Carols in the Garden: There's no better way to infuse oneself with Christmas spirit than by singing all the classic carols. Join East Ascension High Choir Director Erin Perdue, who will lead a group in singing seasonal favorites in the Gonzales library’s rain garden. Afterwards, enjoy hot chocolate and a treat from Sweet Melissa’s Confectionary. 6:30 pm. Free. myapl.org.

December 16: Outdoor Holiday Movie at Livingston Parish Library: Meet Arthur Christmas, Santa’s clumsy son, in a screening of Arthur Christmas at the Main Branch Library in Livingston, complete with hot chocolate and popcorn—B.Y.O. blanket for snuggling. Free. 6 pm. mylpl.info.

December 17–18: The Nutcracker: A Tale from the Bayou: The "Dance of the

Sugar Plum Fairy” melody is intertwined with the holiday season. And in this part of the world, so is the long-running Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre production of The Nutcracker. Each year for generations, local and national dancers of all ages have flitted and fluttered across the stage of the River Center, breathing hyperlocal life into Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece to the tune of Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra accompaniment and a stage set that invokes Baton Rouge landmarks like the Old State Capitol and Oak Alley. BRBT’s version of the timeless classic has become a by-word for Baton Rouge Christmas tradition. World-class dancers, the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, and over three hundred local children participate in this city-wide production. 2 pm and 6 pm each day at the River Center Ballroom. $30–$65. Ticketmaster or at the River Center Box Office. batonrougeballet.org.

December 17–18: Amahl & the Night Visitors: Poor Amahl and his mother receive an unexpected visit from three magnificent kings in Menotti's classic one-act opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. Renowned talent and holiday spirit will warm the Manship Theatre stage when Opéra Louisiane presents Amahl this Christmas season. 7 pm–9 pm. $10–$35 at bontempstix.com. operalouisiane.com.

December 20: Cirque Musica Holiday Wonderland: The River Center Theatre welcomes the mystifying performance of Cirque Musica to its stage—opening the door to a wonderland of dazzling delights created by the world’s greatest cirque performers to a backdrop of symphonic music. 7 pm. $25–$160. raisingcanesrivercenter.com. p

NEW ORLEANS AREA

November 24–January 1: Celebration in the Oaks: Thousa nds of visitors pour into the largest park in New Orleans to see the magical winter spectacle, for which the park’s famous oaks are swathed in hundreds of thousands of twinkling lights across its twenty-five acres, including the Botanical Garden, Storyland, and Carousel Gardens. This year, the display will be available for viewing as a 2.25mile driving tour as well as a walking experience. Or, experience it by bicycle during a dedicated Bike Night. There will also be a Carousel Gardens Train, holiday-themed Storyland, new exhibits, a festive outdoor bar, and more. $35 per person for a walking tour pass, or $40 for a driving tour pass. 5 pm–11 pm, closed Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. celebrationintheoaks.com.

November 26–January 6: Hotel Hopping for the Holidays: Stop at some of the most magical spots in the Crescent City this holiday season, taking

Events

Holiday EvEnts

advantage of NOLA DMC’s hotel tours this year. With various transportation options (prices from $50 per person to $125 per person), the three hour tours will deliver you to the most festive hotel lobbies in the city, where you can enjoy a specialty cocktail and support locallyowned businesses. Enhancement options include a professional tour guide, visits from Santa, cookies and cocoa, and more. A portion of all sales will be donated to the Louisiana Hospitality Foundation. noladmc.com.

November 29–January 1: Waldorf Wonderland: One of the most breathtaking light displays in New Orleans is the Roosevelt's Grand Lobby, including 112,000 twinkling lights, 1,600 feet of garland, and 4,000 glass ornaments. This year, Irma Thomas will do the official lighting on November 29. Free. therooseveltneworleans.com.

November 27–December 27: Teddy Bear Tea: This delightful New Orleans tradition has enchanted young ones and adults alike for generations. At the gorgeously-decorated Roosevelt New Orleans, Santa and Mrs. Claus will welcome all to a presentation of holiday

delights, specialty teas, tasty pastries, and mimosas for Mom and Dad. Two to three seatings each day. $91 for everyone older than eleven; $69 for ages three to ten. therooseveltneworleans.com.

December 1, 5, 6, 13, 15: Jackson Square Concert Series: This holiday tradition brings a mythical aura to the experience of holiday carols, setting local musicians, church choirs, and singers of all genres against the Gothic splendor of the historic St. Louis Cathedral or Anna’s Episcopal Church. Here's the schedule: December 1: Lawrence Cotton Legendary Experience

December 3: The Friendly Travelers (Anna’s) December 5: Da Lovebirds featuring Robin Barnes

December 6: Rachel Van Voorhees

December 7: Shades of Praise December 8: John Boutté

December 10: Papo y Son Mandao (Anna’s) December 12: André Bohren with the Electric Yat Quartet

December 13: Rickie Monie & Friends

December 14: Cameron Dupuy and the Cajun Troubadours

December 15: La Nocha Buena: Spanish Christmas Music of the New World

December 17 : Joy Clark (Anna’s)

December 18: The St. Louis Cathedral Christmas Choir Concert

Free and open to the public. 6 pm–7 pm. holiday.neworleans.com.

December 1–16: Roosevelt Hotel Christmas Concerts in the Lobby: Few do Christmas more grandly than the Roosevelt Hotel. Through the first half of December, New Orleans school choirs will perform beneath the lobby’s twinkling lights. Noon. Free. neworleans.com.

December 2–4: Christkindl Mart: The Deutsches Haus presents its third annual Christkindl Mart for two Saturdays this season, featuring vendors selling handmade or German-themed crafts, local bands and choirs, special German Christmas food favorites, and an appearance from Christkind, or St. Nicholas. Friday 4 pm–8 pm, Saturday 11 am–8 pm, Sunday 11 am–4 pm. Free. deutscheshaus.org.

December 2–11: Holiday Inn by the Jefferson Performing Arts Society: JPAS presents Irving Berlin’s musical about a show business type who settles down. Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30, Sundays at 2 pm. $25–$65. jpas.org.

December 3: Algiers Bonfire and Concert: The city’s official kick-off to the holiday season includes local musical

talent, food, drink, and of course a bonfire—which will light Santa’s way down the Mississippi. The NOLA Burners (the New Orleans group that builds Burning Man-like sculptures every year) will once again have Brennan Steele create a unique bonfire sculpture. 4:30 pm–8 pm at the Algiers Ferry Landing, 200 Morgan Street. neworleans.com.

December 3: Children’s Hospital New Orleans Holiday Parade: This inaugural holiday parade will feature over twenty Mardi Gras World-created floats outfitted with technology like animatronics, intelligent lighting systems, special effects, and beyond. 11 am starting at Esplanade and Elysian Fields, with a celebration in Lafayette Square featuring Rebirth Brass Band to follow at 1 pm. Free. chnola.org.

December 3: Holiday Market at the Ogden: The Ogden Museum of Southern Art has invited a variety of vendors for a uniquely-artful holiday market. Peruse local goods from brands like Oxalis Apothecary, Sweit Stuff, Crazy Plant Bae, Inhabit Oyster Candles, and more. 10 am–5 pm. ogdenmuseum.org.

December 3–31: Holiday Cheers at Ariodante Gallery: Ariodante Art Gallery on Julia Street in New Orleans is yet again bringing in unique work by local artists, this month with a cheerful holiday theme. December’s Featured Artist is

Dr. Heintz joins Dr. Shola Tijani at Lane Pediatrics.

Dr. Heintz is now accepting new patients! To schedule an appointment, please call 225-658-4070. Same day appointments are available!

Dr. Heintz is here to help you with the most important job in life – raising your children and keeping them healthy.

Dr. Heintz’s expertise lies in providing compassionate and nurturing care to children of different ages including neonatal care, performing examinations and evaluations to assess patient growth and development, and treating children with both minor illness and chronic health issues.

Services for newborns, toddlers, children and teens include:

• Well-baby Exams

• Preventive Check-ups

• Immunizations

• Flu Shots and COVID-19 Vaccinations

• Developmental Screenings

• Primary Care Services

• School & Sports Physicals

care to help them stay healthy and happy.

Highlights

Graduated as Valedictorian from Medgar Evers College – The City University of New York

Medical school at St. George’s University School of Medicine

Residency in Pediatrics at University at Buffalo Jacob’s School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Board eligible in Pediatrics

Fluent in Dutch and Hebrew, also speaks German, French, and Yiddish

Lane Pediatrics • 6110 Main Street, Suite B, Zachary • 225-658-4070 • LaneRMC.org

“It is a privilege to care for your children and provide quality, outstanding

I value the trust you place in me and look forward to getting to know and grow with your family.”

Duane Spencer. Works also include crafts by Craig McMillin and jewelry by Rocsean Spencer, along with the work of Carmen Lee Nance Gambrill in the Lagniappe Area. An opening reception will be held on December 3 during the First Saturday Artwalk from 5 pm–9 pm. ariodantegallery.com.

December 4: Krewe of Krampus Parade: Take in the Krewe of Krampus’s NOLAuf Parade, where you might just end up with a lump of coal from the creepy German folkloric figure himself. Rolls at 7 pm. Find the route (to-be-decided) at kreweofkrampus.com.

December 4: Norco Christmas Parade: The small-town pararde returns in full form after a two-year hiatus, complete with Santa and Mrs. Claus, the Destrehan High School band, the Riverside Academy Band, and marching groups including the 610 Stompers. 1 pm. Free. lariverparishes.com.

December 6, 13, 20: December DriveIn Movie— Arthur Christmas & Home Alone : Enjoy a double feature at the Lafon Drive-In in Luling. 5:30 pm. $30. lafonartscenter.org.

December 9–11, 16–17: The New Orleans Jazz Nutcracker: The Marigny Opera Ballet, resident dance company of the Marigny Opera House, will open its ninth season with the return of The New

Each year leading up to Christmas, The Roosevelt Hotel bedecks its lobby in twinkling lights and hosts all manner of festive events—from choir concerts to Teddy Bear Teas. Photo courtesy of the Roosevelt.

marignyoperaballet.org.

five-block fun run at speeds that would turn Rudolph’s nose green, heading for the North Pole (aka Generations Hall, 310 Andrew Higgins Drive). Event organizers are expecting more than four thousand costumed participants this year donned as Santa, Mrs. Claus, Scrooge, Jingle Bells, Jack Frost, Old Man Winter, and so many more; and a raucous costume contest to choose the best one. A portion of proceeds benefit the “That Others May Live” Foundation. 3 pm–6 pm. $30 general admission. runningofthesantas.com.

December 10: Lights on the Lake: Take in the Holiday Boat Parade from the best vantage point on the lake, the New Canal Lighthouse, with the Pontchartrain Conservancy. In addition to the great view, they promise a stellar live music line-up, delicious local food trucks, hot toddies and other seasonal refreshments, kids’ educational activities and crafts, and pictures with Santa. Keep an eye out for details at scienceforourcoast.org.

original Tchaikovsky by New Orleans jazz musician Larry Sieberth and live accompaniment by his ten piece jazz ensemble. 7 pm. Tickets start at $35.

December 10: Running of the Santas: Thousands of jolly, be-jingled joggers will descend on New Orleans’s Warehouse District at 3 pm, starting at the South Pole (aka Manning’s at 519 Fulton Street). At 5:45 pm, the Santas set off through the

December 10: Tacky Sweater Dance Party: Dust off your tackiest, shiniest, jingly-est holiday sweater and show it off while dancing and sipping craft beer at Urban South’s taproom. Rumor has it Santa may even appear for a pint. Noon–6 pm. urbansouthbrewery.com.

December 10: St. Nick Celebration:

Events

Holiday EvEnts

A very New Orleans celebration of the season, with live music, kids’ activities, and a Saint Nick Second Line. Begins at 10 am at the French Market. frenchmarket.org.

December 10–11: Preservation Resource Center Holiday Home Tours: The PRC has once again collaborated with some of the city’s most talented landscape artists and architects to transform private yards and secret gardens into winter wonderlands. See for yourself at this tour of historic Garden District homes. 10 am–4 pm. $40–$45. prcno.org.

December 13–20: Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas: This is the record-setting Broadway holiday sensation, which features hit songs like “You’re A Mean One Mr. Grinch” and “Welcome Christmas” from the original animated special. Max the Dog narrates as the mean and scheming Grinch, whose heart is “two sizes too small,” decides to steal Christmas away from the holiday-loving Whos. Elaborate sets and costumes inspired by Dr. Seuss’s original illustrations do their part to whisk audiences off to the whimsical world

of Whoville, for a Seuss-y reminder of the true meaning of the holiday season. Shows at 7:30 pm December 13–17 with additional performances at 11 am and 3 pm December 17, 1 pm (ASL performance) and 5 pm December 18, and 2 pm December 19–20. Tickets start at $30. saengernola.com.

December 14: Yuletide in Dixie: The Forgotten Story of Enslaved Christmas Experiences before the Civil War: Author and historian Dr. Robert May has done extensive research on what the Christmas experience was like for those enslaved in New Orleans prior to the Civil War. He documents this troubling history and the ways it is often misinterpreted in his book Yuletide in Dixie: Slavery, Christmas, and Southern Memory, and will enlighten an audience on the subject at an upcoming online presentation from the HermannGrima + Gallier Historic Houses. 6 pm. Free. Register at eventbrite.com.

December 15: La Noche Buena: Spanish Christmas Music: The Historic New Orleans Collection presents a special concert of historic Spanish Christmas music at St. Louis Cathedral

in conjunction with the exhibition Spanish New Orleans in the Caribbean. The evening of seasonal music will be performed by master oud player, guitarist, and composer Mahmoud Chouki with the Krewe du Voix Chamber Choir led by Paul Weber. 6 pm. Free. hnoc.org.

December 17: Bayou Gauche Christmas on the Bayou Parade: What says “Christmas in Louisiana” quite like a holiday boat parade on the bayou? We can’t think of much. 6 pm along Bayou Gauche in St. Charles Parish. Free. Find the event on Facebook for more information.

December 17–18: Delta Festival Ballet’s The Nutcracker: Join Louisiana’s largest resident, professional dance company, the Delta Festival Ballet, for their New Orleans rendition of the sweet, sweet classic, The Nutcracker, which features accompaniment performed by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. 2 pm both days at the Mahalia Jackson Theater. Tickets start at $35. saengernola.com.

December 17–18: Jefferson Performing Arts Society’s The Nutcracker: Here's another adaptation of Tchaikovsky’s timeless ballet, at the Jefferson Performing Arts Center. 2 pm. $23–$80. jpas.org.

December 18: French Quarter Holiday Home Tour: The Patio Planters of the Vieux Carré once again present iconic

Quarter homes dressed up for the season. The tour includes details about architectural styles and home furnishings, as well as Christmas decor collections. Self guided walking tours take place between noon–4 pm; $30. patioplanters.net.

December 18: Caroling in Jackson Square: This free community singalong has illuminated the Square by candlelight since 1946, filling the air with holiday favorites. Complimentary songbooks and candles will be provided. 7 pm. Free. patioplanters.net.

December 20: Harry Shearer and Judith Owen’s Christmas Without Tears: The Welsh-born pianist and singer-songwriter joins her husband, comedian and actor of The Simpsons fame Harry Shearer, for the holiday revue that began in the couple’s living room and is now one of New Orleans’s favorite irreverently-funny Yuletide traditions. 7:30 pm both nights at the Orpheum. Tickets start at $71.50. ticketmaster.com.

December 21–30: NOLA

ChristmasFest: Thousands of Louisianans descend on the Ernest Morial Convention Center, drawn by the vision of carving graceful arcs into the ice skating rink alongside Santa. In any case, the event promises to heal bruised prides (and bottoms) with holiday characters,

in nEw orlEans, aCadiana & soutHwEst louisiana

amusement rides, themed inflatables, arts & crafts, decorated Christmas trees, and a gingerbread house exhibition. Inside the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. $25 weekdays; $30 weekends for 4.5 hour session. Find complete admission schedule at nolachristmasfest.com.

December 23: O’Flaherty’s Celtic Christmas: joyful tale of the traditional holiday customs of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales at the Jefferson Performing Arts Center. 7:30 pm. $27–$67. jpas.org.

December 24: Jazz Cruise: glimpse of Santa on his way than floating on the Mississippi. Enjoy holidaydecorated dining on the Creole Queen riverboat. Boards at 5 pm, returns at 8 pm. $99. creolequeen.com.

ACADIANA & SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA

November 25–December 23: Swamp Tours’ Atchafalaya Christmas: Join Papa Noël on the Basin for these incredible one-of-a-kind Cajun holiday experiences. After each tour, guests can take photos with Santa, create their own memento ornament, and enjoy hot chocolate, cookies, and candy canes. $25; $20 for children ages two through twelve. See tour times at mcgeesswamptours.com.

November 26–January 2: Lafayette’s Christmas Tree Extravaganza: of businesses, families, and nonprofits to spark holiday joy this season, Downtown Lafayette challenges everyone to bring out their tree-decorating chops. Over fifty premium spruce trees will be contenders in this monthlong competition. Online voting will be live from December 1–15, with winners announced on December 16. Trees will be on display through January 2, and the tree that receives the most votes throughout the month will receive a $500 donation to the non profit of their choice. downtownlafayette.org.

November 28–December 31: Victorian Christmas at Rip Van Winkle Gardens: The character Rip Van Winkle was beloved by the children in his village for telling them stories and giving them toys. Sound like anyone we know? What better way to celebrate the season than to enjoy a Victorian Christmas at the Joseph Jefferson Home at Rip Van Winkle Gardens. The twenty-five acre paradise will twinkle with Christmas cheer and the Jefferson Home, decorated for the holidays, will be open for tours from 9 am until 4 pm. (337) 359-8525 or ripvanwinklegardens.com.

December 1: Abbeville’s Annual Christmas Stroll: Stroll, shop, dine, and bask in the magic of Christmas in

downtown Abbeville, where white lights will meet live music and Santa Claus himself for a night of holiday bliss. 5:30 pm–8 pm. Free. (337) 898-4110.

December 1: Oh, Night Divine with André Courville and Sweet Cecilia: International opera singer André Courville will join local family trio Sweet

those less fortunate. Friday kicks off with the lighting of the city Christmas tree, with cookies and hot chocolate to set the scene in Downtown Carencro. Saturday brings a vendor village to the Carencro Community Center, with local eats and choirs, plus the annual “Dancer, Dasher, Prancer 5K Run”. Text or call (337) 280-9570 for details.

December 2–4, 8–11, 15–18: An Acadiana Christmas Carol: Cité des Arts brings Ebenezer St. Grouge to the Louisiana in An Acadiana Christmas Carol. Adapted from the beloved Christmas story, it is set in contemporary south Louisiana and brings the viewer on a journey powered by Christmas magic. The opening night gala is Friday, December 2 at 6 pm. $45. All other shows at 7:30 pm; 2 pm on Sundays. $20. citedesarts.org.

December 2–18: ACTS Theatre Present s Elf! The Musical: Will Ferrell crashing wide-eyed through James Caan’s cynicism made Elf a Christmas classic when it hit movie theaters in 2003. Fifteen years later, the tale has spread to the stage with Elf! The Musical. Watch a hapless man learn that he is not, in fact, an elf. (So that’s why he’s so tall and can’t make toys...) Song and dance are a natural fit. At

Events

Holiday EvEnts

in aCadiana & soutHwEst louisiana

ACTS Theatre in Lake Charles. Tickets and showtimes at actstheatre.com.

December 2–23: Noël Acadien au Village: LARC’s Acadian Village will host its annual Christmas festival fundraiser to benefit persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Noël Acadien au Village will feature half a million lights, themed Acadian home porches, lighted holiday displays, live entertainment, carnival rides, local cuisine, photos with Santa, holiday shopping, and more. Be sure to visit the Gingerbread House and Christmas Carolers. The event will be open nightly from 5:30 pm–9 pm (weather permitting). $10 at the gate. Children ages two and younger, as well as active military, are free. For the full entertainment schedule, tickets, and other information, visit acadianvillage.org.

December 3: Christmas in the Village: Small town Christmas and all its charm will be epitomized in downtown Loreauville, where the lighting of the town Christmas tree will draw out local food, craft vendors, special surprises, and—yes, Santa himself. 5 pm–10

pm. Free. Details at the Loreauville Community Project Facebook Page.

December 3: Noël a Broussard: The holiday season leaps to the streets with the annual Broussard Christmas Parade, starting at the corner of Morgan Avenue and Albertson Parkway, and ending at Arceneaux Park. Begins at 3 pm. Afterwards, celebrate the festive spirit in front of Broussard City Hall with Reindeer games, face painting, balloon artistry, a Christmas Market, and the annual lighting of the City Christmas Tree. Caroling begins at 6 pm, tree-lighting at 7 pm. Free. broussardchamberla.chambermaster.com.

December 3: Christmas at the Barn Craft Show: The Stables Events and Weddings in New Iberia will play host to over thirty vendors of handmade treasures. Santa will be available for photos, and kids will be fully entertained by fun jumps, sweets and more. 9 am–5 pm. Details at the Christmas at the Barn (Handmade Craft Show) Facebook event.

December 3: Jingle Bell Market: This artful shopping experience from the Hilliard brings options for local art and

other goodies to add to your holiday gift list this year. Featuring hot chocolate and family photo opportunities, Christmas movies, creative gifts, and more 10 am–5 pm. hillliardmuseum.org.

December 3: Lighting of the Tree Concert: Don’t miss the annual Lighting of the Tree Concert in Parc International in Downtown Lafayette—which has been transformed into a winter wonderland. Enjoy performances by Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble on the main stage. Look forward to photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, holiday crafts, and snacks provided by local restaurants. 5 pm–9 pm. Free. downtownlafayette.org.

December 3: Christmas in Erath: Come together in downtown Erath for an annual holiday event sure to bring lasting memories to all, featuring delicious food, kids’ activities, and the Christmas Tree Lighting at 3 pm–8 pm. Details at the Christmas in Erath page on Facebook.

December 4: Christmas Carnival: Meet in Parc International for a holiday celebration—bolstered by face painting, pony rides, and fun jumps, not to mention local vendors peddling spirited wares. 2 pm–5 pm. downtownlafayette.org.

December 4: Sonic Christmas Parade and After Party: Welcome Santa to Lafayette this season and meet him on the parade route, which runs from Jefferson

through Downtown all the way to the Oil Center. Afterwards, keep the fun going at the official after party in Parc International, featuring cookie decorating, arts and crafts, inflatables, food, beverages, and much more. Parade starts at 1 pm. Free. downtownlafayette.org.

December 6–17: Vermilionville Gingerbread House Contest: For the first time, Vermilionville is inviting gingerbread bakers and architects of all ages to submit their most creative spiced creations to potentially win prizes. All competing projects must be submitted by December 9, and visitors to Vermilionville from December 12–16 will have the chance to vote for the People’s Choice project, and judging for winning projects will be December 17, during Old Time Winter Family Day. Free. vermilionville.org.

December 8: Candlelight Christmas: Head to Parc International in Downtown Lafayette for a special narration of the Bethlehem story, enriched by singing of traditional Christmas carols led by local choir members. Hot chocolate and other treats will be available for purchase. 6 pm–7 pm. Free. downtownlafayette.org.

December 8: The 2022 Opelousas

Children’s Christmas Parade: Any joyous occasion in Louisiana calls for a parade, and Christmas is no exception.

entertainment, music, marching bands, lighted floats, and most importantly: Santa and his buddies. Starts at 6 pm at Academy and Landry Streets, and rolls through downtown Opelousas to the Yambilee Grounds. (337) 948-6263.

December 9–10: Lake Area Ballet Theatre’s The Nutcracker: The Lake Area Ballet Theatre of Lake Charles will stage the classic Christmas production The Nutcracker. Performances at 7 pm Friday and Saturday and 2 pm Saturday. $25. lakeareaballettheatre.com.

It’s everyone’s favorite monthly market, Christmas-style. Enjoy this holiday-themed market set up in Parc Sans Souci in Downtown Lafayette, featuring over thirty vendors with one-of-a-kind artwork and gifts, plus live entertainment. 4 pm. Free. downtownlafayette.org.

December 10: A Very Merry Holiday Symphony: Ring in the Christmas season with an assortment of holiday favorite music performed in all its grandeur by the Lake Charles Symphony at the Lake

for students. lcsymphony.com.

December 10: Queen City Christmas Parade: A festive parade will meander down New Iberia’s historic Main Street, directly followed by a boat parade on Bayou Teche, and a grand finale of fireworks. The street parade will include the Berry Queens, the Bunk Johnson Brazz Band, Bayou Lit Bikes, visiting royalty, and the man in red (that would be Santa) himself. Following the street parade, Santa will be available for photos in his workshop in the Bouligny Plaza

Gazebo. For the boat parade, head bayouside to take in the Christmas lights and holiday-bedecked boats parade down the Teche. Street parade begins at 5:30 pm, the boat parade begins at 6 pm at Bayou Landing (Lewis Street Bridge). bayoutraditions.com.

December 10: A Very Berry Christmas Quest: Grab your family and set out on an adventure across New Iberia, completing a list of kid-friendly tasks with stops inside all of your favorite local businesses. Pick up your goody bag—filled with coupons and holiday treats, as well as your quest cards, at the Iberia Chamber office. Each quest task completed earns a sticker, and once participants have earned seven stickers, they can drop off their completed activity card at the office. Every family that turns in a completed card will be entered to win prizes. 9 am–4 pm. $10 for children ages four to seventeen; $5 for adults ages eighteen and older. bayoutraditions.com.

December 10: Pancakes and PJs with Santa: Families are invited to bring their blankets to the Sliman Theatre in New Iberia for a pancakes and sausage picnic with Santa and Mrs. Claus, plus holiday face painting, story time with Mrs. Claus, and photo opportunities with Santa. 8 am–11 am. $10–$15. bayoutraditions.com.

December 10 : Delcambre Christmas Boat Parade: In Louisiana, we’ve got two

Celebrate the season at Moncus Park in Lafayette, where Christmas in the Park will feature live Zydeco music from Chubby Carrier, Gerald Gruenig and Gentilly

Events

Holiday EvEnts

in aCadiana, soutHwEst, CEntral & nortH louisiana

kinds of parades—mainland and boat. Aficionados of the boat parade genre, Delcambre residents will be celebrating the season with the town’s annual Christmas Boat Parade, starting at 6 pm at the Delcambre dock and featuring lighted boats of all sizes as they cruise Bayou Carlin to the tune of your favorite carols. (800) 884-6120 ext. 7.

December 10: Bernice Street Christmas by Candlelight: Take in the historic Lafayette street all a-twinkle with the warmth of candlelight. Enjoy hot chocolate and cookies, and keep an eye out for special guests Santa and Mr. Grinch. Kids can also enjoy a train ride. 5:30 pm–9 pm. Details at the Bernice St. Christmas Lighting Facebook Page.

December 10: Christmas ArtWalk in Paris a la Breaux Bridge: Stroll the glittering streets of beautiful Breaux Bridge, all holiday-ed up as she is, for this special artwalk. Step into downtown shops, galleries, and restaurants, and meet local artists showcasing their work on the street. 4 pm–8 pm. Details on the Facebook page for the event.

December 10: Christmas in Washington: Shop from vendors from 10 am–5 pm, and watch the big tree light up at 7 pm. There’ll be a DJ and Kids’ Corner. Downtown Washington on Main Street. (337) 826-3626.

December 10–11: Lafayette Ballet Theatre presents The Nutcracker: An Acadiana tradition sets the stage again with the full-length, classical ballet The Nutcracker performed by the Lafayette Ballet Theatre professional company dancers. Don’t miss this timeless tale by E.T.A. Hoffman set to Tchaikovsky’s famous score, presented at the Heymann Performing Arts Center. 7 pm Saturday; 2 pm Sunday. Tickets start at $30. lafayetteballettheatre.org.

December 10–16: Christmas Light Festival at Almosta Ranch: Load the family in the car and head to Almosta Ranch in Sulphur for festive light displays, opportunities to take photos with Santa or Fiona and Donkey, a petting zoo, Christmas games, campfires, and much more. 5:30 pm–9 pm. $20 per car, additional wristbands may be purchased for pony rides, s’mores, etc. visitlakecharles.org.

December 10–23: Lafayette Art Association’s Christmas Market: The Lafayette Art Association will host sixteen local artists for this special holiday market, peddling greeting cards, mixed media originals, jewelry, prints, glassware,

pottery, paintings, ceramics, and more. 10 am–3 pm each day. For more details email afac.dusty@gmail.com.

December 11: Delcambre Main Street

Christmas Parade: Santa joins local marching bands and dance groups to deck the streets in Delcambre. 2 pm–4 pm. (337) 519-2541.

December 11: Lake Charles’

Holiday Art

Under the Oak: Embrace the joy of the holiday season, take photos with Santa, and wrap up gift shopping with local artisans beneath the majestic Sallier Oak tree at the Imperial Calcasieu Museum. The event will also feature live music performances by Dominique Darbonne and Wesley Royer. Noon–3 pm. Free. visitlakecharles.org.

December 13: Do You Hear What I Hear? with the Acadiana Symphony Youth Orchestra: As part of the Acadiana Symphony Youth Orchestra’s “Turning Points” season, the organization explores the cultural shifts present this holiday season. Enjoy a cheered performance of popular Christmas songs by local guest artists Chris Burris, the Chorale des Amis, and the Lafayette High School Chorus. 7 pm at the Heymann Performing Arts Center. Tickets start at $24. acadianasymphony.org.

December 16–18: Christmas in the Park: Celebrate the season in Lafayette’s Moncus Park, where local musicians Chubby Carrier, Gerald Gruenig and Gentilly Zydeco, and Wayne Toups will infuse the air with holiday spirit. Bring the kids—there will be activities just for them, including sleigh rides and photos with Santa. Food will be available for purchase. 6 pm–9 pm. $10 for on-site parking. moncuspark.org.

December 16–18: Christmas at the Bayou: This annual Christmas Concert put on by The Bayou Church captures the essence of Christmas in Acadiana, bringing together musical performances by some of the area’s most beloved musicians. Performances will take place at 7 pm Friday; 3 pm and 5 pm Saturday; 1 pm, 3 pm, and 5 pm on Sunday. Sunday evening’s performance will also be streamed on Facebook Live and YouTube. Free. thebayouchurch.org.

December 17: Teddy Bear Tea at Moncus Park: Moncus Park’s magical teatime with Mrs. Claus will feature a specialty menu, along with entertainment designed for young hearts (and the young at heart). Enjoy delicious food, holiday pastries, and limitless mimosas. Seatings at 10 am and 2 pm. $85 for adults; $55

for children (which includes a Teddy Bear gift). moncuspark.org.

December 17: Old Time Winter Family Day at Vermilionville: Vermilionville’s Historic Village will receive a holiday makeover, transporting visitors back in time to experience the simple beauty of Christmases past. Sing carols, hear stories, decorate cookies, make bousillage ornaments, and more. The Village will be in Christmas mode from December 13–23, with the big day of fun on December 17. 10 am–4 pm. bayouvermiliondistrict.org.

December 18: Mistletoe & Mystery Brunch: The holidays get mysterious at this investigative sleuthing supper— who is the merry murderer? Don your Christmas attire and enjoy a delicious brunch and unlimited mimosas while sussing through a slew of sleighing suspects. Seatings at 10 am and 2 pm at Moncus Park. $85; $15 to receive a clue before the event. moncuspark.org. p

CENTRAL & NORTH LOUISIANA

(The Louisiana Holiday Trail of Lights)

November 11–December 31: Freedom Trees at the Chennault Aviation & Military Museum: The Chennault Aviation & Military Museum honors the veterans and those currently serving in the U.S. military during this holiday season with a stunning tribute of its Freedom Trees. See them alight all through New Year’s Eve. Free. chennaultmuseum.org.

November 11–December 31: Candy Cane Lane: The Hanson family in Monroe invites all to drive through the wonderland of over one million Christmas lights installed on their fifty-two acres of private property—an immersive drivethru Christmas experience designed to instill all of the excitement and magic of childhood in visitors of every age. 6 pm–10 pm. $20 cash per vehicle; $40 per commercial vehicle (church van, fifteen-passenger van, etc). candycanelane.net.

November 19–December 31: Logansport Christmas Festival: The village of Logansport will come together at the start of the season to light up the town, transforming it into a glittery winter wonderland. Opening night festivities will include a carnival, local vendors, a car show, a parade, and fireworks—and more special events will take place throughout the season. discoverdesoto.com.

November 19–January

straight. Saturdays bring vendors, live music, fireworks, a boat parade, and kids activities to the Riverbank area and require armbands for anyone older than six. $10. natchitocheschristmas.com.

November 21–December 31: Land of Lights: The perfect excuse for an evening stroll—soak up the magic of the light displays throughout Downtown Monroe & West Monroe, which get turned on at 5:30 pm each night. monroe-westmonroe-org.

November 25–December 18, and December 19–23: Christmas in Roseland: The American Rose Center in Shreveport transforms into a whimsical winter wonderland with twinkling lights, giant Christmas cards, and other holiday displays. Each night from 6 pm–9 pm, Santa will be sitting pretty in the Garden for photographs. The vendor market will be by on the weekend of December 2–4, and on the last night of the festivities—a candle-lit singalong will signal it’s time for Christmas Eve to finally arrive. 5:30 pm–10 pm. $10 per person; $30 per carload. sbfunguide.com.

November 25–26, December 2–3, 9, 16–18: Believe! Lights the Night: The Shreveport Aquarium gets a holiday makeover for this magical, interactive Christmas journey. Attendees will receive a magic, motion-activated Christmas wand with the ability to turn on lights, make music play, create reindeer footprints, jingle bells, and more as they join Christmas cheer with the wonder of the aquarium’s underwater residents. Costume characters will complete the experience, from Mrs. Claus to jolly elves to a Snow Mermaid. Plus, hot chocolate and cookies, photo ops, and a holiday craft. Christmas jammies encouraged. $30. 5:15 pm–9:30 pm, with last entry at 8:15 pm. shreveportaquarium.com.

November 25–December 23: Holiday Wagon Rides: Experience the festive dressings of downtown West Monroe from the vantage of a wagon. Pickups take place every thirty minutes in Alley Park, starting at 5 pm. $10 for adults; $5 for kids. monroe-westmonroe.org.

November 25–December 25: Christmas at Kiroli: For nineteen nights, Kiroli Park’s winding roads will be transformed into a twinkling wonderland. Drive through the displays for miles throughout the holiday season. 6 pm–9 pm. $10 per vehicle, $20 per commercial bus or large van. christmasatkiroli.com.

6: Natchitoches

Christmas Festival: The famous Christmas festivities in Natchitoches mean the holiday spirit is in full swing, when over 300,000 holiday lights flicker on every evening for six weeks

November 25–December 25 (Select nights): Dark Woods Christmas in the Park: Immerse yourself in Christmas Spirit at the annual Christmas in the Park event, located just a short drive from the famous Natchitoches Christmas Festival.

Events

Holiday EvEnts

Meet the Clauses, enjoy seasonal treats, and brighten your spirits with magical light displays. $6 for ages four and older. darkwoodschristmas.com.

November 25–January 29: Sno-Port: Throughout the holiday season, visitors to the Sci-Port Discovery Center in Shreveport will get the opportunity to immerse themselves in a an interactive science “playground,” created by local artists to foster a snowy, science-focused, experience. Expect a sock skating rink, a “freeze frame” photo backdrop, snowball pong, and an igloo experience featuring a recreation of the Northern Lights. 9 am–5 pm Wednesday–Saturday; noon–5 pm Sunday. $6. sci-port.org/snoport.

December 1–3: Biedenharn Christmas Open House: Live music, photo ops with Santa, a Christmas Train, and more festive fa-la-las. 5 pm–8 pm. bmuseum.org.

December 1–3: Lincoln Light Up The Pines: Ruston’s only drive-thru Christmas lights display comes from a collaboration with Lincoln Parish Park, the Chamber of Commerce, the CVB, and a local camping group. Drive through the campgrounds, where vintage campers will

be elaborately decorated for the season. 5:30 pm–10 pm. $10 per car; $20 per bus. All fees will go to benefit Lincoln Parish Park. Details at the Lincoln Light Up the Pines Facebook Page.

December 1–4: Elf: The Musical: Ruston Community Theatre brings the orphan elf, Buddy, to the stage for their Christmas production. Catch the hilarious, heart-warming story this season at 7 pm Thursday–Saturday; 2 pm on Sunday. $20; $10 for children and students. rctruston.org.

December 2: Monroe Christmas Tree Lighting: Join the City of Monroe for the annual lighting of the town Christmas Tree at Civic Center Plaza. Hot chocolate and cookies will make the event extra cozy, and the night will close with a screening of a family-friendly Christmas movie. 5 pm–7:30 pm. Free. monroe-westmonroe.org.

December 2 & 4: The Kansas City Southern’s Holiday Express: The train returns to North Louisiana for the first time since before the pandemic, bringing holiday magic Polar Expressstyle to Shreveport, Monroe, Mansfield,

DeQuincy, and Leesville. At each stop, you can hop on the train, meet Santa and his elves, and tour three incredibly-decked out traincars. 4 pm. Free. Get the whole schedule at kcsouthern.com.

December 2–December 10: Not a Creature Was Stirring, Not Even a Moose: The Back Alley Community Theatre in Grand Cane presents its fast paced Christmas comedy to kick off the season. 7 pm Thursdays–Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. $15. backalleygrandcane.com.

December 3: An Elvis My Way Christmas: Award-winning impersonator Brandon Bennett brings his fabulous tribute to the Mari Showroom at Paragon Casino Resort, with a focus on holiday favorites from the King. 8 pm. $25. paragoncasinoresort.com.

December 3: East Bank Holiday Market: The Bossier Arts Council will once again host its annual holiday market in the East Bank Plaza. Get to shopping, holidaystyle—while enjoying live music, local vendors, food trucks, and more. 4 pm–9 pm. sbfunguide.com.

December 3: Grand Cane Christmas Parade & Holiday Market: Head downtown in the little village of Grand Cane for a happy holiday parade, plus plenty of local artisans to grab your gifts from. discoverdesoto.com.

December 3: Front Porch Tour of

Homes: The Grand Cane Historic Association shows off the facades of four of its most beautiful historic homes during Christmastime. Noon–4 pm. $20 for adults, $5 for children younger than twelve. discoverdesoto.com.

December 3: Caddo Fireworks

Festival: Come by Earl Williamson Park in Oil City at 3:30 pm for fair food, live music, chats with Santa (and a free gift), and holiday shopping— then stay for the incredible fireworks display scheduled for 6:30 pm. Free. christmasoncaddofireworks.com.

December 3: Twin City Ballet

Christmas Gala: Join the Twin City Ballet for their 2022 Christmas gala productions, celebrated first with a Patron Party and the annual Festival of Trees. Afterwards, the ballet will perform the productions Santa’s Spy and Heavenly Peace. 7 pm. $25. twincityballet.org.

December 3: Christmas on the Farm: Ruston’s Outdoor Wilderness Learning Center invites one and all to an outdoor celebration of the season, featuring pony rides, a petting zoo, a maze, crafts, games, a bounce house, hay rides, a rock wall, and more. And, of course, a chance to meet the man in red. All proceeds benefit the Center’s therapeutic riding program. 10 am–3 pm. $20 per car, cash only. lumcfs.org.

December 3: Christmas on the River

5K & Walk: Get your jingle on with this annual holiday 5K and walk in West Monroe’s Alley Park. Don’t forget to come decked out for the season—even if you don’t cross the finish line first, you can still win the costume contest! 8:45 am. $30. monroe-westmonroe.org.

December 3: Bawcomville Redneck Christmas Parade: Living in Louisiana, to say “you’ve never seen a parade like this” is no small thing. But I’m telling you, you’ve never seen a parade like this. This self-deprecatory fun-filled parade dives into the redneck theme, and throws all sorts of interesting surprises. Rolls down Smith Street from Riser Elementary School to Jonesboro Road in Bawcomville. 10 am. monroewestmonroe.org.

December 3: Kiwanis Christmas Parade: The Kiwanis Club of Greater Ouachita sets out on its annual Christmas Parade, themed this year “Christmas Past and Present”—and concluded by a fireworks display. 3:30 pm. Free. monroelakiwanis.org.

December 3: Christmas on the River Fireworks: Don’t miss the annual shebang, best viewed from downtown Monroe or West Monroe. 6 pm. Free. monroe-westmonroe.org.

December 3–4: Ol’ Mel’s Farm Christmas Fest: Explore the Farmturned-Christmas Village at 50 Chevalliar Road in Deville, where you can shop vendors, sweets and treats, take photo ops with Santa, ride horses, frolic in a snow area, roast marshmallow, sing carols, and more. 2 pm–8 pm. $5 at the entry, $10 to park at the neighbors’ instead of taking the free shuttle ride. Ol’ Mel’s Merry Christmas Farm event on Facebook.

December 3, 10, 17: Breakfast with Santa: Up in the North Pole, the sea creatures are quite different than down in Louisiana. Which is why Santa loves to come visit the Shreveport Aquarium. He will be hosting a special pancake breakfast (pancakes with chocolate chips and whipped cream, scrambled eggs, potatoes, bacon, fruit, coffee, and juice) there for a few Saturdays this holiday season. Afterwards, be sure to explore the magical Christmasdecorated aquarium. Seatings at 8:30 am and 10:30 am. $35 for adults and children. shreveportaquarium.com.

December 7: World Ballet Series: Nutcracker: The Shreveport Municipal Auditorium hosts a new production of the Christmas tale best experienced onstage, presented by the multinational cast of professional dancers with the World Ballet Series. 7 pm. $30. shreveportmunicipalauditorium.com.

December 8: Ruston Holiday Sip and

Stroll: Enjoy the lax open-container laws of Louisiana this holiday season as you finish up your holiday shopping list. Local stores will offer holiday specials and extended hours, along with special signature drinks. 5 pm–8 pm. rustonlincoln.com.

December 8: Holiday Singalong at Railroad Park: Head to Ruston’s Railroad Park for a chance to belt out all your favorite Christmas classics. 6:30 pm. Free. Details at the Ruston Cultural District Facebook Page. December 8–11: Alex Winter Fete: This free, family-friendly festival returns to Alexandria with a slate of exciting cozy activities for all. Try a twirl on the outdoor skating rink, watch in wonder at the fireworks over the Red River, explore the multicultural village and Jolly Junction, and interact with talented stilt walkers, fire breathers, live bands, and more. It all begins with the traditional lighting of the tree and Santa’s arrival at Santa’s Village at the Alexander Fulton Mini Park downtown. Other mustsee events include the Ugly Sweater 5K on Saturday and the Alexandria Mardi Gras Association Christmas Parade downtown at 2 pm on Sunday. alexwinterfete.com.

December 8–10, 15–17: Natchitoches Christmas Home Tours: Hosted by the Natchitoches Historic Foundation, these tours take you into some of the historic district’s most fascinating homes, all decked out for the season. Special tours include the “Tinsel & Treats Christmas Porches Tour” and the “Holly and History Tours”. Docents will lead commentaries on the history of each property, as well as their unique holiday decorations. Times and prices vary. Find full details and schedule at natchitocheshf.com.

December 8–11, 14–18: Honky Tonk

Angels Holiday Spectacular : Shreveport Little Theatre’s Main Stage welcomes three good ole country gals for a spirited musical revue at Nashville’s “The Hillbilly Heaven Club,” where they meet a psychic, gospel soul sister. Catch the show at 7:30 pm Thursday–Saturdays and 2 pm on Sundays. $30. shreveportlittletheatre.com.

December 9: West Monroe Children’s Lighted Parade: There’s just something so special about great things, miniaturized. Don’t miss this teeny Christmas Parade in Downtown West Monroe, designed for tykes and tinies, with bicycles, wagons, and batterypowered cars rolling down Trenton—all beneath the city’s gorgeous light displays. 6 pm. Free. monroe-westmonroe.org.

December 9–11, 17–18: The Strauss

Events

Holiday EvEnts

in CEntral louisiana, nortH louisiana & tHE FEliCianas

Youth Academy’s Production of A Christmas Carol: This Northeast Louisiana organization focuses on encouraging youth to get involved, be creative, and have fun through the arts. Their production of A Christmas Carol is sure to warm hearts and foster holiday feels. All at the Strauss Youth Academy for the Arts in Monroe, at 7 pm on Friday and Saturdays, 3 pm Sundays. $15. syaaonline.com.

December 10 : Mansfield Christmas Parade: Marching units, performing groups, and elaborate floats will proceed down Kings Highway this season in Mansfield to celebrate all the joy of Christmastime. 11 am. Free. discoverdesoto.com.

December 10: Ruston Christmas Parade: Gather up the family for another chance at watching floats and catching goodies this season, now in downtown Ruston. 10 am. rustonlincoln.com.

December 10: Bossier Holiday Night Market: The largest one-day vendor event in the country, the Bossier Holiday Night Market returns to the

parking lot of the Pierre Bossier Mall with 75,000 twinkling lights, live Christmas music, free kids’ activities, and lots of Bossier swag. Vendors from all over will be peddling everything from one-of-a-kind handcrafted goods to delicious food truck eats to vintage clothing. 4 pm–9 pm. Entry is free. bossiernightmarket.com.

December 10: Calhoun Christmas Parade: This year, Calhoun’s annual Christmas Parade is themed “Christmas Movies—Old and New”. Sit back and watch the festive interpretations displayed on locally-made floats. 11 am. Free. monroe-westmonroe.org.

December 10: Holidays with the Monroe Symphony Orchestra: Celebrate the season with orchestral performances of Christmas classics, featuring soloists Kristen Oden and Blake Oden. 7 pm at the North Monroe Baptist Church. $25; $5 for students. mymso.org.

December 10: Pet Photos with Santa: Snag the cutest Christmas keepsake ever by bringing your furry pal to Biedenharn Museum for a photo with

the big guy himself. $15 per pet. 9 am–noon. bmuseum.org.

December 10–11: Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet’s Production of The Nutcracker: Over one hundred local dancers take the stage for this holiday performance, telling the beloved story of adventure and holiday magic. 6:30 pm Saturday, 2:30 pm Sunday. $35–$55. shreveportmetroballet.org.

December 13–16: The Frozen Kingdom: Presented by the Louisiana Delta Ballet at the Monroe Civic Center, The Frozen Kingdom tells a

story of a land where good and evil collide and trolls live as guardians, side by side with humans. Don’t miss this enchanting Christmas adventure, which will conclude with the grand Coronation Ball Gala Performance on December 16 at 6:30 pm—when you can meet and take photos with the characters up-close, indulge in face painting and dancing, and more before the final performance. All other performances at 7:30 pm. $25 for General Admission; $40 for tickets to the Coronation Ball.

louisianadeltaballet.com.

New Orleans City Park's beloved holiday light event Celebration in the Oaks returns, this year as both a 2.25 mile driving tour and a walking experience—featuring light-up displays of iconic Louisiana holiday figures, like Mr. Bingle. See listing on page 17. Photo courtesy of Celebration in the Oaks.

December 13–17, 20–22, 27–29:

Winter Wonderland at Ruston

Sports Complex: Head to the Ruston Sports Complex and imagine you live somewhere a tad colder. The whole space will be transformed into an ice skating rink, made more magical by appearances from Santa and hot chocolate. 5 pm–7 pm each day, with an additional slot from noon–3 pm on Saturday. rustonlincoln.com.

December 16: Minden Tree Lighting Ceremony: Join in with the town of Minden to usher in the holiday season by officially lighting the town tree at the Minden Civic Center. Explore the charming town via tractor-pulled hayride, made more magical by the allalight city and Christmas carols. The Young Women’s Service Club will serve hot chocolate for $1. 5:30 pm–9 pm. greatermindenchamber.com.

December 16: Rehab Reindeer Run

5K: Minden Medical Center Rehab & Physical Therapy will host a run/ walk through downtown Minden to coincide with the official lighting of the town tree. Starts at 6 pm. $35. greatermindenchamber.com.

December 16–18: The Most Amazing Christmas Play Series in the Entire History of the World: The Back Alley Community Theatre gleefully

presents these four short plays that turn Christmas traditions on their heads. 6 pm Friday and Saturday. 2 pm Sunday. dramaniacs.com.

December 17: Start the Season in Downtown Minden : On this special Saturday, downtown Minden businesses will be in full festive mode. Start with a holiday brunch at Geaux Fresh, before grabbing a hot chocolate or coffee at The Broken Bean. Make an ornament craft at the Dorcheat Museum, accompanied by a Christmas movie ($10), and stop by the Reindeer Games children’s area downtown to enjoy bounce houses, pony rides, and more. Pearl Street will be filled with arts and crafts vendors, and at The Courtyard, the Junior Service League will be roasting free s’mores. Grab photos with the Clauses, as well as Rudolph and Friends at Logan McConathy State Farm, the Webster Parish Library, and in Jacqueline Park. Then at 4 pm, head downtown for the “Rudolph’s Holly Jolly Christmas” parade. The day will end with fireworks, and a screening of Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer in Miller Quarter Park. greatermindenchamber.com.

December 17: Stonewall Christmas Parade: Themed “Elf on the Shelf,” the community Christmas parade returns in Stonewall, where all of the floats

will be decked out in lights and local organizations will be on full display. 6:30 pm. Free. discoverdesoto.com.

December 17: Jingle Bell Run: Get those twinkly toes out there for this 10K and 5K run designed to encourage the community to embrace a more active lifestyle and to support local nonprofits. Race begins and ends at Forsythe Park. 8 am. $10 for Fun Run/ Walk; $30 for 5K; $40 for 10K. louisianapurchasecouncil.org.

December 17: Christmas Market on the Alley: Head out to West Monroe’s Alley Park for a spirited Christmas Market, perfect for all of your lastminute shopping needs. 11 am–3 pm. Free. monroe-westmonroe.org.

December 21: Christmas Coca Cola Truck: The season’s most photogenic vehicle is making a stop in Monroe at the Biedenharn, as is the Christmas Train, the Coca Cola Polar Bear, and yummy food trucks. 4 pm–8 pm. Free. bmuseum.org. p

THE FELICIANAS

November 26–December 3: Christmas in the Country Wreath Sale: Complete your Christmas decor with one of the Old Benevolent Society’s (28”–36”) wreaths, for sale at the West Feliciana Historical

Society Museum as a fundraiser for the Old Benevolent Society’s Building Restoration projects. $40–$80. Preorder at eventbrite.com.

November 26–December 31:

Christmas Cheer at Rosedown: The Rosedown Plantation State Historic Site staff decotates the 1835 home in an early-to-mid-nineteenth century style, featuring greenery, holly, fruit and nuts on fireplace mantels, chandeliers decorated with holly and mistletoe, evergreen-draped banisters, a decorative display on the dining table, and a tabletop Christmas tree. The twenty-eight-acre gardens are naturally ornamented with every shade of red and green from the countless varieties of blooming camellias, assorted varieties of holly, ardisia (Christmas Berry), and other winter friends. Rosedown will also be on display during St. Francisville’s annual Christmas in the Country event

December 2–4. Rosedown Historic site is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm, except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. lastateparks.com.

December 2: A Southern Christmas: The town of Clinton embraces the holiday season with “A Southern Christmas,” which includes a Holly Jolly 1-mile Fun Run & Walk (5:30 pm) followed by a plethora of other

Events

holiday activities like special drinks and bites along historic Main Street, carolers providing good cheer, and special deals at local businesses. Kids can have photos taken with Santa and The Grinch, watch a seasonal flick on the large projector screen, and even decorate holiday cupcakes. Begins at 5 pm in Clinton’s Courthouse Square. Free. townofclintonla.com.

December 2–4: St. Francisville Christmas in the Country: It all begins at the Town Hall, where local middle and high school students will perform carols on the front porch on Friday evening. From there the weekend continues with the town Lighting of the Christmas Tree, the “Jingle Bell Mingle” market, live music in Parker Park, and a living Nativity scene at the First Baptist Church, complete with cookies, crafts, and petting stables. Finish the night with a tour of the lights and decorations at the West Feliciana Hospital campus. Saturday brings more festivities, including an arts market in Parker Park, music in the Gazebo, hymns at the Methodist Church, and more. It all

concludes on Sunday with the sweet St. Francisville Christmas Parade at 2 pm. stfrancisvillefestivals.com.

December 3: Sounds of the Season Concert and Dessert Reception at Grace Church: Ivan Griffin will perform special holiday classics as part of this beloved holiday tradition at Grace Church. A dessert reception will follow at Jackson Hall. All proceeds will go towards the renovation efforts of the Old Benevolent Society Building on Ferdinand Street. Doors open at 6:45 pm. stfrancisvillefestivals.com.

December 3: The Friends of the West Feliciana Parish Library Christmas Tour of Homes: Explore four of St. Francisville’s most intriguing homes, all dressed in their holiday best—as well as the new state of the art Bains Elementary School. 10 am–4 pm. $30 in advance; $35 day-of. Tickets available online at Eventbrite, at Birds of a Feather, the library, or by calling (225) 635-3364.

December 3: Breakfast with Santa at Grace Church: The West Feliciana High School dance and cheer teams

will once again host their annual breakfast with Santa to jump start the holiday season. Enjoy a delicious hot breakfast, photos with the big jolly guy himself, and a spirited performance by West Feliciana High School dancers and cheerleaders. 8 am, 9:30 am, and 11 am. $10. eventbrite.com.

December 3: A Dickens of a Christmas : Step into the holidays of centuries past at Audubon Oakley House, where costumed guides will show visitors through the festivelydecorated, candelit home. Taste the holiday treats brewing in the kitchen, and enjoy the annual Christmas dance. $10 for adults (age eighteen–sixty-one), $8 for senior citizens (age sixty-two and over), $6 for children (age four–seventeen), and free for age four and under. (225) 635-3739. lastateparks.com.

December 9: Chamber Series Holiday Brass 2022: The full Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra brass and percussion musicians are ready and excited to put you in the holiday spirit with a warm and grand selection of holiday classics in the magical environs of Hemingbough. 7:30 pm–9:30 pm. $30. brso.org.

December 23: Vibes in the Ville— Christmas Edition: Enjoy live music

by The Traveling Dive Bar Band in Parker Park while munching on Reindeer food. 5:30 pm. Free. stfrancisvillefestivals.com. p

Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre presents

Other Events

UNTIL DEC 23rd

PHOTOGRAPHY & CULTURE REPÉRAGES: QUEBEC-LOUISIANE Lafayette, Louisiana

Eight Louisiana and Six Quebecois photographers have captured images that speak to their respective regions of Quebec and South Louisiana. These poignant portraits of two different but connected homes are on display in the exhibition Repérages: Quebec-Louisiane at the Acadiana Center for the Arts, after opening in Quebec earlier this year. It is displayed in partnership with CODOFIL and KINOMADA. acadianacenterforthearts.org. k

UNTIL DEC 31st

ART EXHIBITIONS

ELIZABETHAN GALLERY ANNUAL FALL ART SHOW Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Elizabethan Gallery is opening its doors for its annual show and sale. The show features works by Carol Hallock, who is known for her serene impressionistic paintings that frequently capture the landscapes and

waterways of Louisiana. Other artists whose work will be featured in the gallery include Mickey Asche, Diego Larguia, Krista Roche, Claire Pasqua, Betty Efferson, Keith Douglas, Kathy Daigle, Nancy Smitherman, Justin Patin, and Heather Connole. Free. elizabethangallery.com. k

UNTIL DEC 31st

ART EXHIBITIONS

INTROSPECTION: LAND OF MISFIT TOYS Arnaudville, Louisiana

On exhibit at NUNU Arts & Culture Collective is an exhibition by a variety of artists titled Introspection: Land of Misfit Toys. For the open-call exhibition, artists were asked to look inward and consider the beauty of broken and damaged aspects of themselves. nunucollective.org. k

UNTIL DEC 31st

ART EXHIBITIONS THE LOUISIANA

in Covington presents the Louisiana Watercolor Society Winter Juried Member Show, this year juried by award-winning Signature Member of the society Tracy Hebert. An Artist Walk & Talk featuring artists Laura Mitchell, Peggy Kirby, and Rita Congemi will be held December 2 at 2:30 pm in the Atrium Gallery. Free. (985) 590-8816. k

UNTIL DEC 31 st TEXTILES EXHIBITIONS

ART QUILT EXHIBIT

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The Studio Art Quilt Associates Inc. (SAQA) have a new exhibition in the Shell Gallery of the Cary Saurage Community Arts Center with the theme “The Artist’s Question Answered in Fiber”. New York-based Quilt Artist Zak Foster has juried the exhibition, selecting twenty-nine works inspired by the theme that will be on display. artsbr.org. k

UNTIL DEC 31st

ART EXHIBITIONS

BRYANT BENOIT SOLO

who explores his Creole heritage and the history of his community via bold paintings and collages. citedesarts.org. k

UNTIL JAN 3rd ART EXHIBITIONS

L'ACADIAN ART GUILD FALL EXHIBIT

New Iberia, Louisiana

L'Acadian Art Guild's Winter Show will be open to the public at the Iberia Parish Library. Free. Find the group on Facebook for more information. k

UNTIL JAN 14th

ART & CULTURE POETICS OF SELFHOOD / POÉTIQUE DE L'IPSÉITÉ Lafayette, Louisiana

Launching at the Acadiana Center for the Arts in partnership with La Station Culturelle, Fort de France, Martinique—the exhibition Poetics of Selfhood / Poétique de L'Ipséité probes at the global understanding of the Creole cultural identity. Envisioned as a multiyear, multi-destination exhibition, the project brings together diverse artistic explorations by five contemporary artists—all contemplating Creolité from its place in communities around the world : from Martinique to Guyana to Sengal to Acadiana. Locally, the Opelousas artist and

Events

folklorist Rebecca Henry, founder of the Creole Heritage Folklife Center, represents Acadiana's vantage. Exemplifying the ways these different, but interconnected, cultures converse—the works presented represent a range of traditional media, as well as more experimental artistic endeavors. Over the next five years, the exhibition will travel to locations in Martinique, Belgium, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, and France. acadianacenterforthearts.org.

Learn more about Louisiana's representative in this exhibition, artist and folklorist Rebecca Henry, in our "Perspectives" column on page 62. k

UNTIL JAN 31st IMMERSIVE EXHIBITIONS

NOTRE-DAME DE PARIS: THE AUGMENTED EXHIBITION New Orleans, Louisiana

A stunning, one-of-a-kind exhibition depicting the rich history and architectural glory of Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral has filled the third floor of The Historic New Orleans Collection's exhibition center. Notre-Dame de Paris: The Augmented Exhibition brings viewers through the

entire history of the storied cathedral, from its monumental construction all the way through the devastating blaze that consumed it in 2019, via vibrantly-colorful high-definition images and projections, augmented with state-of-the-art virtual reality technology. The groundbreaking exhibition is produced by French technology firm Histovery in collaboration with the Public Institution in Charge of the Conservation and Restoration of Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral. After its premiere in Paris, France, this unique immersive experience has recently arrived in New Orleans after a run in Washington D.C.. Each viewer of the exhibit is issued a hand-held, touch-screen tablet called a HistoPad ™—which has been developed by Histovery, and brings viewers back in time to landmark moments in NotreDame's history. Free. hnoc.org. k

UNTIL FEB 26th

ART EXHIBITIONS

MEDITERRANEA: AMERICAN ART FROM THE GRAHAM D. WILLIFORD COLLECTION Baton Rouge, Louisiana

In this new exhibition at the LSU Museum

of Art, seventy-one late 19th century and twentieth century paintings offer a peek into the experience of American artists on their grand tours of Europe's Mediterranean region—through visual investigations of the land, history, and heritage they encountered. lsumoa.org. k

UNTIL APR 11th

PHOTOGRAPHY & NATURE WILD BEES

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Writer and photojournalist Paula Sharp has teamed up with veteran nature photographer Ross Batman to spend three years documenting over 120 species of wild bees. Now, twenty six of these photographs will be on display in the Colonnade Gallery at the Louisiana Art and Science Museum. lasm.org. k

DEC 2 nd - DEC 4 th

GOOD EATS BALLOONS & BOUCHERIE

Sorrento, Louisiana

It's a whole-hog, hot air kinda weekend when the Sorrento Lions Club brings Boucherie Festival to the Ascension Hot Air Balloon Festival. If pigs were ever going to fly, it'll happen here. You'll wanna do a little advance fasting, as the menu includes jambalaya,

hogshead cheese, cracklins, boudin and boudin balls, roast pork, and chicken and andouille gumbo—and those balloons can only carry so much weight. The combined event will beheld at 9690 Airline Highway in Sorrento, featuring all the traditional trappings of the Boucherie Fest: Cracklin' and Jambalaya Cook-offs, pig roasting, and all things pork— only now is the added magic of hot air balloon glows, live entertainment, fireworks, carnival rides, and more. Fun to be had all weekend. 5 pm–10:30 pm Friday; noon–11 pm Saturday; noon–6 pm Sunday. Admission by donation. boucheriefestival.com. k

DEC 3 rd

PUBLIC ART MURAL PRESENTATION

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The East Baton Rouge Parish Library welcomes Palacio's House of Arts for a presentation and dedication of the library's new, twenty-foot mural, "Ida: Be a Resilient Artist," which can be found on the first floor, across from the large meeting room. In celebration, local children will present their art and there will be a live music, door prizes, raffles, and refreshments. 6:30 pm. Free. ebrpl.com. k

FUN FUNDRAISERS

IMPROVISATIONS GALA

New Orleans, Louisiana

No doubt about it, you'll be out on the dance floor at the New Orleans Jazz Museum's annual Improvisations Gala, a night for all the city's famed creativity to ferment in one beautiful space. An exclusive Patron Party kicks off the night from 7 pm–8 pm, with performances from Germaine Bazzle Band with Charlie Gabriel, and culinary treats from Drago’s Seafood Restaurant, Galatoire’s, Acme Oyster House, and Dickie Brennan & Co. Catering & Events, At 8 pm, the main party sprawls through the Jazz Museum's galleries and campus with cuisine from local restaurants, a silent auction and live painting, and a live music lineup including local favorites Irma Thomas, GALACTIC featuring Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, Mahmoud Chouki, Aurora Nealand, Shake ‘em Up Jazz Band, Opera Creole with Trumpet Mafia, Tim Laughlin, the Detroit Brooks Quintet, international composer, performer, conductor Łukasz L.U.C Rostkowski, Victor Atkins, the Treme Lafitte Brass Band with Big Queen Mary K Stevenson of the Wild Tchoupitoulas Indians & the N’Awlins D’Awlins Baby Dolls; and many, many more. 8 pm–11 pm. Tickets begin at $150 at nolajazzmuseum.org . k

DEC 3rd

WINTER FESTIVALS

SILENT LIGHT FESTIVAL

Ocean Springs, Mississippi

Each year leading up to the holiday season, Walter Anderson Museum of Art is transformed with color and light for its annual Silent Light Festival, when the museum is transformed by light-art installations, interactive projections, shadow dancers, and beyond—inspired by Walter Anderson's designs, nature, and the winter solstice. Food and drink vendors will be on site. 6 pm–10 pm. Free, $10 all-night Silent Disco headphone rental (optional). walterandersonmuseum.org. k

DEC 3rd - DEC 11th

SILVER SCREEN LISTENING ROOM

FILM FESTIVAL

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Henry Turner Jr.’s Listening Room is branching from music and soul food into another realm entirely with its first-annual film festival, with the goal of highlighting features about music and entertainment from throughout the Southeast area. The festival will screen several local culture documentaries, as well as include panels and live music performances from artists who are

featured in the films. The festival will take place both physically and virtually. Saturday and Sunday from 11 am to 11 pm, Monday–Friday from 3 pm to 11 pm. For entry guidelines, tickets, festival hours and more information visit htjmuseum.org. k

DEC 3 rd - DEC 31 st

ART EXHIBITIONS

PONTOON PERSPECTIVES: GALLERY 600 JULIA New Orleans, Louisiana

During the month of December, stop by Gallery 600 Julia to view Carol Hallock's calming renderings of Louisiana swamplife along Bayou Lacombe in a style she refers to as "loser realism" in an exhibition titled Pontoon Perspectives. The exhibition opens in conjunction with the Warehouse Arts District Art Walk December 3, with an opening reception from 6 pm–9 pm. Gallery hours are Monday–Saturday, 10 am–3:30 pm. Free. gallery600julia.com. k

DEC 4 th CONCERTS

LOUISIANA CROSSROADS: JOHN CLEARY Lafayette, Louisiana

Cajun, Zydeco, Brass, Blues, and Jazz: Louisiana's traditional musical identity is wild, creative, and beloved. However, as in most things—there is more to it. The Acadiana Center for the Arts' Louisiana Crossroads Series highlights some of the region's most accomplished non-traditional musicians, showcasing them on the stage of the James Devin Moncus Theater for intimate performances. Up next, Grammywinning New Orleans-based pianist and songwriter John Cleary performs "100 Years of New Orleans Piano". 7:30 pm. $35–$55. acadianacenterforthearts.org. k

DEC 4th

LOCAL

ART

HISTORY HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CLEMENTINE HUNTER! Baton Rouge, Louisiana

To celebrate the birthday of one of our region's greatest folk artists, Clementine Hunter, the LSU Museum of Art will host a mixed-media art experience. 1 pm–5 pm. Free admission and participation. lsumoa.org. k

DEC 5th CONCERTS

SPA TRIO AT DIXON HALL New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans Friends of Music presents the SPA Trio, made up of soprano

Events

Beginning December 5th - December 31st

Susanna Phillips, viola player Paul Neubauer, and pianist Anne-Marie McDermott; in Tulane University's Dixon Hall. 7:30 pm. Subscriptions to New Orleans Friends of Music's 2022–2023 season start at $25 at eventbrite.com. k

DEC 5th

ART EXHIBITIONS

EMERGING ARTIST EXHIBIT

Opelousas, Louisiana

Take in the artwork of Opelousas locals Ke'Shawn Collins and Ilea McGee. A reception will be held from 5 pm–7 pm. Free. Find the museum on Facebook for more information. k

DEC 7th - DEC 8th

PROBLEM SOLVING 2022 LOUISIANA SMART GROWTH SUMMIT Baton Rouge, Louisiana

The seventeenth-annual Louisiana Smart Growth Summit welcomes national and local experts and innovators ready to share their ideas and solutions for the unique challenges faced by Louisianans—such as blight, flood risk, health disparities, and inequitable land uses—as we work together to build the Louisiana cities, towns, and places of the future. This year's summit will take place at the Manship Theatre. To view the Summit agenda, speakers, topics, and schedule, visit summit.cpex.org. k

DEC 7th - JAN 29th

PHOTO EXHIBITIONS

CURRENTS 2022

New Orleans, Louisiana

The New Orleans Photo Alliance (NOPA), in partnership with the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, presents CURRENTS 2022 , its annual members showcase that highlights the diverse work being created by NOPA members. The exhibit was curated by juror Philip March Jones, who founded MARCH, a public benefit corporation and gallery with the goal of highlighting under-recognized artists located in Manhattan’s East Village neighborhood. ogdenmuseum.org. k

DEC 8th

CONCERTS

EDDIE PALMIERI LATIN JAZZ BAND AT ACA

Lafayette, Louisiana

The Eddie Palmieri Latin Jazz Band will take the stage at the Acadiana Center for the Arts this month as part of their Allstar Series. 7:30 pm. $35–$55. acadianacenterforthearts.org. k

DEC 9th

ART & SCIENC

ART AFTER HOURS

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

For this Louisiana Art & Science Museum Art After Hours event, Louisiana Tech Professor of Art and VISTA Center CoDirector Professor Nick Bustamante, along with his Co-Director Dr. Jamie Newman, will lead a tour of the Illustrating Health exhibition. 6 pm–8 pm. $15; Free for members. lasm.org. k

DEC 9th - DEC 11th

MARKET PLACE

HELEN BRETT GIFT & JEWELRY

SHOW

Gonzales, Louisiana

This sprawling winter bonanza will feature nearly five hundred vendors in the LamarDixon Expo Center. Jewelry, home decor, women's product, and seasonal gifts at wholesale prices will all be present. 10 am–5 pm Friday and Saturday, and 10 am–4 pm Sunday. $17. Children under fifteen free. helenbrettexhibits.com. k

DEC 9th - JAN 29th

LOCAL HISTORY BLACK ALCHEMY: REMEMBERING FAZENDEVILLE New Orleans, Louisiana

Fazendeville in St. Bernard Parish was once a vibrant African American community, though sadly no physical evidence of the neighborhood remains. The Ogden Museum's exhibition Black Alchemy: Remembering Fazendeville marks the history of Fazendeville through Aaron Turner's photographs of memories and historical artifacts. The exhibit is presented as part of PhotoNOLA, the annual celebration of photography produced by the New Orleans Photo Alliance. ogdenmuseum.org. k

DEC 2nd - DEC 4th

WINTER FESTIVALS

PLAQUEMINES PARISH ORANGE FESTIVAL Plaquemines, Louisiana

Orange you glad there's something to celebrate besides Christmas? This year the Plaquemines Parish Fair and Orange Festival returns to the magnificent grounds of historic Fort Jackson in Buras. The three-day event celebrates a century of citrus farming with live music, family activities, local foods, Civil War re-enactments on the hour, carnival and helicopter rides—and lots of cooking and eating contests. Few festivals offer an array of competitions as diverse as this one: pie eating, orange eating, orange

A new exhibition at the Ogden Museum recalls the vibrant Black community of Fazendeville, before the neighborhood was leveled because it sat atop the Battle of New Orleans commemorative site. Artwork by Aaron Turner, “Looking at Homer Milton Charles Sr. (Remembrance and Legacy of Fazendeville, Louisiana | 18671964)". Courtesy of the Ogden Museum.

off Highway 23. Friday is focused on the carnival, but the events begin on Saturday. orangefestival.com. k

DEC 15th

CONCERTS

JAZZ LISTENING ROOM: CONNOR UNDERWOOD TRIO Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Connor Underwood Trio perform at the Cary Saurage Community Arts Center as part of the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge's Jazz Listening Room Series. 7:30 pm. $20 at bontempstix.com. Details at artsbr.org. k

DEC 15th - DEC 18th

WINTER FESTIVALS

LUNA FÊTE

New Orleans, Louisiana

The Arts Council of New Orleans’s LUNA Fête (which stands for Light Up NOLA Arts) returns to position local architecture as canvases for high-tech displays of outdoor light installations. LUNA Fête merges contemporary light, digital sculpture, motion graphics, and video mapping practices in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center Pedestrian Park. 6 pm–10 pm nightly. lunafete.com. k

DEC 17th

LIVE MUSIC CIVIC ORCHESTRA OF BATON ROUGE WINTER CONCERT Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Join the Civic Orchestra of Baton Rouge

DEC 31st

COUNT DOWN VERMILIONVILLE

NEW YEAR’S EVE DANCE Lafayette, Louisiana

Vermilionville is welcoming 2023 with the help of Geno Delafose and the French Rockin’ Boogie, plus plenty of food, drinks, and dancing. 8:30 pm. $35, includes a complimentary glass of champagne at midnight. bayouvermiliondistrict.org. k

DEC 31st

COUNT DOWN CITY OF FRANKLIN

NEW YEARS EVE Franklin, Louisiana

Ring in 2023 in historic downtown Franklin. 6:30 until midnight. cajuncoast.com. k

Find our full list of events, including those we couldn't fit into print, by pointing your phone camera here.

Visit Historic Jackson, LA

Saturday, December 10: Christmas Fest. 5 pm ‘til …

During the holiday season, if you haven’t driven along Charter Street after dark then you’re missing out on one of small-town Louisiana’s prettiest Christmas lighting displays. Although the lights stay on all season, this year the best time to go will be Saturday, December 10, when Charter Street merchants host open houses, shopping specials, visits with Santa, and seasonal music and refreshments from 5 pm.

Jointly presented by the Jackson Tourism Enhancement Committee & the Town of Jackson. Blue Frog Antiques is ground zero for event information. To learn more about any event, text Ginger at (225) 933-4911 or email ging130@yahoo.com

By Kelsey Villeret

Photo by Marvin Roxas, courtesy of the Louisiana River Parishes Tourist Commission.

The air is frigid—or as close to frigid as a Louisiana win ter gets. Carols pour forth from the radio as the sun sets behind the levee. The parking lot in front of St. Peter’s Church in Reserve is full of life and laughter as River Par ish families gather to eat jambalaya with gloved hands and set up their flimsy fab ric lawn chairs.

Fathers and sons stand next to their creations—massive towers of driftwood stacked neatly into triangles pointing to the sky. Everyone waits eagerly for night fall. The pyres line the ridge of the levee, casting shadows as dusk officially settles in.

For as long as there is recorded history, the Christmas Eve bonfires have been a niche staple of the River Parishes’ culture. Their precise origin is unclear, though most people believe that the practice dates to the 1700s. The original purpose of the bonfires is the subject of specula tion, attributed to traditions as diverse as French-German celebrations and meth ods of guiding ships safely along the Mis sissippi River. While Old World French and German settlers were known to light bonfires in honor of St. John the Baptist for being a “lantern of light,” the custom was most likely reintroduced to the River Parishes by French immigrants during the nineteenth century. However, for locals today, the bonfires serve a very par ticular purpose: to catch the eye of Papa Noël.

John D. Hymel of Garyville has been building bonfires every Christmas since he was a child. Growing up on River Road, he and his family enjoyed ample access to the large supply of Mississippi driftwood needed to build.

“The most basic bonfire starts with a strong middle pole,” Hymel explained. “That’s the first step. After that comes four side poles that lean onto the middle one, and a cross shape at the top to hold it all together.”

Bonfire building is dangerous work. Having a faulty base could lead to the tower toppling over while the builder is packing up the inside, or worse—after it’s been lit. Today, there are more restric tions surrounding the building process than there once were. But before state officials lowered the height limit to fifteen feet in 2014, there were frequent injuries caused by falling driftwood due to dis proportionate building.

Hymel explained that a properly constructed bonfire pyre should burn evenly from top to bottom, like a melt ing candle. He stressed that there is only one chance to light it correctly so that it burns safely. The method has become key facet of the tradition: lighting a Roman candle and aiming it at the tower so that the flames shoot directly toward the cen ter. Usually, the builder will perform the honors of starting the fire, but young sons are often granted permission to take over that task if they helped with the building process. Proper packing of the structure will ensure that a slightly inaccurate shot

won’t ruin the entire event. Once the flame starts, it will usually last from six to eight hours—plenty of time for Papa Noël to visit all the houses along the river.

A permit is required to build on the levee, and building does not begin until the week leading up to Christmas Eve. Even with safety precautions in place, the fire department can still cancel the burning mere hours before the event if the wind is unfavorable. This is incred ibly rare, though, and one of the only times that the event was canceled during my lifetime was in 2020 as a result of the pandemic.

Garyville, Hymel’s hometown, is proud to hold the record for the world’s largest bonfire. Built back in 1979, the legendary bonfire maxed out at an impressive seventy-eight feet tall. It was the first bonfire (and one of the few since) to require heavy-duty machinery to com plete. To this day, most bonfires are built the old-fashioned way.

For locals like Hymel, the tradition connects one generation to the next, and has become a huge part of his own cul tural identity as a woodworker—a hobby for which he often uses the same drift

wood from behind the levee. “It’s a way for families to come together,” he said. “I grew up doing it with my dad, and now I build them with my own family. It makes good memories for the kids.”

A new era of the River Parishes bon fires began in the winter of 2013, when the local group Blood Sweat and Bonfires started gaining popularity on Facebook for their extravagant bonfire designs. Some of their builds over the years have included a guitar, a crab, a rocket ship, and even a snapping turtle whose beak could open and close.

The group is made up of twelve men, all of whom share a passion for the unique Southern tradition. Joshua Weidert said he and the other members come up with their ideas each year by brainstorming on the levee with a few beers.

Weidert explained that the tradition has resulted in a tourist culture in the River Parishes—something these small towns between New Orleans and Baton Rouge are otherwise less accustomed to. “We’ve met people from all over the world now,” he said, citing visitors from thirty-two states and nine countries.

These designs are kept a secret for as long as possible, usually up until most of the building has been completed. Weidert has given Country Roads an early reveal for their 2022 design, however: The American Bullfrog will wear the fiery crown this year.

While the bonfires have long served as a way for families to spend time together during the holidays, all are welcome to drive down River Road and witness for themselves the stunning tableau of this centuries-old tradition.

Imagining the view from above, the line of fire stretches all the way from St. James Parish to St. Charles Parish. As the night grows older and the flames con tinue to rise, children will tire of play ing and fall asleep in their mothers’ laps, visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads. h

Plan your trip to “Bonfire Country” this holiday season by visiting lariverparishes. com/bonfirecountry.

“Everyone wants to see what new design we’re going to have next.”

Photo by Sidney Donaldson, courtesy of the Festival of the Bonfires in Lutcher, Louisiana.

Photo by Boone Clemens, courtesy of the Louisiana River Parishes Tourist Commission.

Réveillon (R)evolution

HOW

A FORGOTTEN

FRENCH CATHOLIC HOLIDAY TRADITION WAS BROUGHT BACK FROM OBLIVION AND TRANSFORMED FOR MODERN DINERS

By Alexandra Kennon

It’s hard to imagine that New Orlea nians would allow a tradition as indulgent and impractical as a 2 am Christmas Eve feast to fall into the forgotten past. And yet, in the decades leading up to the 1980s, the history of Réveillon dinners was nearly lost entirely.

But long before Réveillon nearly slipped from New Orleans’ collec tive consciousness, and longer before the savvy historians and marketers of the 1980s teamed up to transform the tradition into a special holiday restau rant experience, the original notion of a Réveillon dinner was quintessentially New Orleans—meaning it was French, Catholic, and decadent.

Though Réveillon is well-suited to the Crescent City, the tradition extended— and in some places still extends—far beyond Louisiana and throughout the French-cultured world and parts of the Spanish-influenced world, as well. Evidence points to Réveillon dinners once held in France, Belgium, Brazil, Quebec, New York City, Detroit, and even San Francisco—anywhere French Catholics lived, even in small pockets. Catholic families in the nineteenth cen tury (and some historians believe long prior, perhaps even back to the Medieval period) would fast all day on Christmas Eve leading up to a Midnight Mass ser vice. Following the mass, families would break their fast with a grand multi-course feast that often including egg dishes, a daube glacé (or jellied meat tourine), and rounded out with wines, towering dis

plays of cakes and desserts, and coffee or brandy.

According to Ann Masson, New Orle ans-based architectural historian and historic preservationist who has previ ously served as director of the Preserva tion Resource Center, director of Gal lier House, president of the BK Historic House, and faculty member/professor at the Tulane School of Architecture and Masters of Historic Preservation pro grams, the French word “Réveillon” itself means “revive” or “wake up.”

“It originally had a spiritual meaning in that early on, people spent the Christ mas Eve day in fasting or prayer or chant ing,” Masson explained. “And then the day would culminate in the Midnight Mass, after which they would have a kind of earthly reawakening in that they would eat and drink and be merry and have this party, but it was really a spiri tual awakening to the birth of Christ.”

By some accounts, the tradition of pri vate Réveillon dinners following Mid night Mass remained in New Orleans through the 1800s, surviving in some homes as late as the 1930s. The modern American emphasis on the kids waking up to find Santa’s gifts on Christmas morning, Masson said, did not take hold until the 1940s with World War II— meaning the adults were able to indulge in the late night Christmas Eve tradition and sleep in the following day.

Masson recalled once speaking with French Quarter couple Henry and “Peachy” Villerie, whose families had

each lived in the city since the French colonial period. Henry had grown up on Esplanade Avenue in a home where French was routinely spoken, and had vivid recollections of his family’s Christ mas Eve Réveillon dinners when he was a child.

“And so he knew all about the Réveil lon, and told us all about what it was like, and how they did it, and when, and why, and all those things,” Masson recalled. “Which was just such a treat to have a really firsthand account of it.”

While New Orleanians like Villerie recalled Réveillon as a Christmas Eve tra dition, there were various periods of the nineteenth century in French-populated areas globally, including in New Orleans, where Réveillon was interpreted as a New Year’s Eve celebration.

“And so apparently, the home [Christ mas Eve] tradition continued kind of underground, while the big festivity, the idea of the Réveillon, got transferred to New Year’s Eve,” Masson mused. “And I don’t quite understand how that hap pened, but it happened.”

While it seems the practice of private Réveillon dinners continued in some homes, restaurants at the turn of the cen tury started advertising “Réveillons” as flashy New Year’s Eve affairs. “And then there starts this deluge of announce ments. There are people’s anniversary party Réveillons, there are debut party Réveillons on New Year’s Eve. There are all kinds of Réveillons on New Year’s Eve,” Masson said of her archival

research on the tradition’s practice in the early twentieth century.

“And then, the word suddenly just dis appears.”

By the 1980s, it was rare for those who grew up in and around New Orle ans to even know what a Réveillon din ner was, let alone for their families to host them. “When this idea came up, it was like, ‘Oh, I lived here my whole life … but I didn’t know that this was a din ing tradition.’ And I would venture that most of the other people didn’t either,” said Sandra Dartus, who was Executive Director of French Quarter Festivals, Incorporated (FQFI) when efforts began to revive Réveillon in restaurants in the 1980s.

At that time, New Orleans was no lon ger widely-regarded as a holiday destina tion. “New Orleans was basically empty in December, it was one of our slowest periods [of the year]. And we needed to do something to increase tourism,” Dartus recalled. “And we felt like we are one of the most cultural cities, and cer tainly one of the most European cities, in the country, and we didn’t have to do things like big, sparkly Christmas trees or make up things, because there were customs and traditions that surround us every day, like, Papa Noël,—the Santa Claus—and the Réveillon dining custom.”

Historians and marketing profession als have a particularly symbiotic rela tionship in New Orleans, and Réveillon’s mid-1980s revival is the result of just

such a collaboration. Masson recalled a meeting in the early ‘80s where histori ans from several French Quarter muse ums and historic organizations gathered to pool their research on local historic Christmas traditions. “You have to remember, in those days, you had to look up things unindexed on microfilm until you could find a newspaper ad or any thing, right? So, the research was rather precious at the time,” she said. “I think it was at that meeting that the idea of the Réveillon was brought up. And I couldn’t tell you whose pile it was in, but I think that was the first time I heard about it.”

With Réveillon, Dartus and the rest of the folks at FQFI knew they had the authentically historic, European cen terpiece for their “A Creole Christmas” marketing campaign (which has since been changed to “Holidays New Orleans Style”)—if they could just bring Réveil lon into the twenty-first century. “Why can’t we adapt it to today’s terms? No one is going to go home after Midnight Mass and have these fabulous, sumptuous din ners in their homes. But we have all these restaurants who need the business just like the hotels needed the business during that period,” Dartus said.

The team started contacting local restaurants and chefs, asking them to create menus inspired by the historic feasts. “So, we just asked the restaurants to work with us on creating menus that

said, laughingly pointing out that today’s chefs seldom want to make daube gla cée. “And it created something special for people.” The concept was an immediate success. According to Masson, Mister B’s Bistro was the first restaurant to offer a Réveillon menu in 1986.

“All of it was in the French Quarter, and very traditional,” Masson recalls of the first years of the restaurant-ver sion of Réveillon, when menus had to be approved by a committee as histori cally-reflective of the tradition’s origins.

“And then after a while, other restau rants in the city wanted to get into it.” In 2003, FQFI removed the menu-approval requirement, inviting new concepts and restaurants to be part of the tradition, too.

Restaurants serving cuisines beyond Creole and Cajun, like Mexican and Vietnamese restaurants, were (and still are) able to participate in offering more contemporary takes on Réveillon menus.

“But actually, the Vietnamese commu nity already had Réveillon [history], because of the French connection,” Mas son pointed out.

Most restaurants who participate in Réveillon these days fall somewhere in between—they embrace the clas sic indulgence that Réveillon’s history inspires, while incorporating a contem porary edge.

“That’s kind of our menu philosophy for everything, you know, modern clas sics, and some things that that are more

creative and inventive, and that’s what we carried on with the Réveillon,” said Rich ard Hughes, executive chef at the Peli can Club, which has offered a Réveillon menu during the holidays since the early days of its return.

At the time that we spoke, Hughes was putting the final touches on the Pelican Club’s 2022 Réveillon menu. “Planning a menu, I try to hit on all the kind of key points, categories. And then within each category, I can kind of interpret it how I want to, and I try to have just kind of a broad stroke, have a nice balance between old and new,” he said. “And there’s always a few dishes, where we just throw caution to the wind.”

This year, one of The Pelican Club’s “throw caution to the wind” selections has manifested as housemade beet rav ioli with gorgonzola and brown but ter-roasted walnuts. Another more tra ditional offering, leaning deep into the indulgent spirit of Réveillon, will be a foie gras- and cornbread-stuffed brace of quail with a pepper jelly glaze, butternut squash, and braised mustard greens— the brainchild of Chef de Cuisine Mark Kaufmann. A trio of duck including duck jambalaya, duck confit, and seared breast; and a filet mignon with a march and du vin sauce also embrace the dec adent past. Over thirty restaurants are offering their takes on Réveillon this year, ranging from New Orleans grand dames like Commander’s Palace and Tujague’s to newer additions like Couvant, Cos tera, and Gianna. Chef Eric Cook at Gris-Gris and Saint John offers a varia tion on the tradition, Mangé Loa, which offers similar holiday menus inspired instead by the annual Voodoo ritual that loosely translates to “feeding of the gods/ spirits”.

While of course today’s Réveillon looks quite different than its historic predecessor, certain core values of the tradition endure—the meals may not

take place in homes following Midnight Mass, but they are certainly still festive, lengthy, and indulgent feasts. “It’s a lot longer [than the average dinner]. It’s four courses, and then we throw in lagniappe at the end. So, we do a Maker’s Mark eggnog and you get that complimentary toward the end of your meal,” Hughes said. “And of course, we have our Christ mas decorations up so, you know, that kind of lends to the festive spirit….the idea of Réveillon carries it a long way.”

“When we think of the rich culture, traditions, and history of New Orleans— food and family are always at the fore front,” said Emily Madero, current Pres ident and CEO of FQFI. “Whether it was the nineteenth century, or now in the present, we celebrate in the same fashion, gathering to enjoy delicious food from recipes passed down generation by gener ation. That is why traditions like Réveil lon are still so relevant and vibrant in our city, and why FQFI is committed to con tinuing the tradition every year.”

Masson, who was among that first group of historians to rediscover Réveil lon, has thoroughly embraced its cur rent iteration. Since its return to the city over thirty-five years ago, she, her late husband, and Peggy and Errol Laborde would annually choose a different restau rant to enjoy a Réveillon meal each holiday season. She plans to continue embracing Réveillon for years to come.

“I love the Réveillon tradition.” Mas son gushed. “We’ve just been doing this forever. And it’s just a nice way to get together with friends and be a little festive.” h

To view the classic and contemporary New Orleans restaurants participating in Réveillon this year and their menus, visit holiday. neworleans.com/tradition/ Réveillon-dinners

“WE ARE ONE OF THE MOST CULTURAL CITIES, AND CERTAINLY ONE OF THE MOST EUROPEAN CITIES, IN THE COUNTRY, AND WE DIDN’T HAVE TO DO THINGS LIKE BIG, SPARKLY CHRISTMAS TREES OR MAKEUP THINGS, BECAUSE THERE WERE CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS THAT SURROUND US EVERY DAY, LIKE, PAPA NOËL,—THE SANTA CLAUS—AND THE RÉVEILLON DINING CUSTOM.” —SANDRA DARTUS

Photos of Arnaud’s restaurant, which hosts a fairly traditional version of the Réveillon each year. Photos by Brian Huff, courtesy of Arnaud’s.

The Year’s Last Visitor

ACROSS CAJUN COUNTRY, A CAST OF MAGICAL FIGURES DISTRIBUTE GIFTS FOR THE NEW YEAR

By Jordan LaHaye Fontenot

Season after season, right at the heart of the post-Christmas haze—once Claus and his crew have long returned home— another magical figure prepares their visit to Acadiana. Traveling the prairies and the swamplands on the night the world emerges into a new year, this rumored relative of Father Christmas seeks out the little Louisiana children who have posted their invitation: rows of shoes standing apple.

Some of our friends who lived here, we knew, got a visit instead from a woman, Madame Grandnuit (Lady of the Big Night) or Madame Grands Doigts (“Lady Long Fingers”)—who left fruit and sweets just as Papa L’an did. To explain why some of us got him and some of us got her, we decided that the two must be married—splitting the night’s work evenly. In this way, we con tributed our own thread to the entangled

tradition gains its own idiosyncrasies and evolutions. No one seems to have practiced it exactly the same. Some peo ple used shoes, some put out knee socks, hats, bowls, pillowcases. Some simply received their New Year’s gifts—almost invariably fruits, nuts, and candy—right under the tree. Some people believed the New Year’s Eve gifts were “things Santa Claus forgot.” Others explained the phenomenon as the Madame or

over from the “Santa Claus” figure of Germany and other Western European countries, the Christkind—who is usu ally depicted as a blonde, female child dressed in white. Where she is bestknown in Louisiana, people leave their stockings and pillowcases out to receive her treats—also the standard fruit, nuts, and candy.

Then there’s Le Petit Bonhomme Jan vier (“The Little January Man,”), who in

witch—described by Mary Alice Fon tenot in the Crowley Post Signal in 1979 as a mean old woman with enormous fingers, who visits bad little children and “rubs them out with a great, wide finger, like smashing a mosquito on the win dow screen. Poo yi!” This is the version of the Madame that Fontenot grew up with—a one-eighty from the benevolent New Year’s Eve visitor of separate-but-re lated lore. “This is a new version to me,”

In his 2021 book Folklore Figures of French and Creole Louisiana, Nathan Rabalais, a Eunice native and the French Louisiana specialist in the Department of Modern Languages at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, explores the dual identity of the Madame—whose “unusu ally long fingers are used to reach into hung stockings to deposit treats, or to strike fear.”

As is the case with much of oral histo

“I wondered, ‘How did this tradition start?’ But as you know, there’s really nothing … it was just such one note. Let’s give her some history, let’s give her some backstory. So, I just created a story of how she became Madame Grands Doigts by being Mademoiselle. I wanted to make sure that the tradition was pre served beyond just ‘She puts oranges in our stockings for New Years’ or ‘She pokes you with her long fingers.’”

Bottom image excerpted from Johnnette Downing’s Mademoiselle Grands Doigts, artwork by Heather Stanley.

SWEET TOOTH Well-Fostered

Cuisine

From the tableside burner, the smell of car amelizing brown sugar and butter fills the entire dining room. The waiter tops the bub bling sauce with fresh sliced bananas. The sauce thickens, then the dish gets a shot of rum for a quick flambé. Diners at the nearby tables are all turned this way, watching the action, cellphones out. The Ba nanas Foster is completed as the warm, flambéed fruit finds its home in a bowl, nestled into waiting pillows of vanilla ice cream. This classic New Orleans dessert has its origins just down the road at the original Brennan’s Vieux Carré restaurant on Bourbon Street, and contin ues today as a treasured tradition at Brennan’s current lo cation on Royal Street.

So the story goes, in the 1950s, Ella Brennan, who was general manager of Brennan’s at the time, came up with the caramelized concoction at the request of Ella’s broth er, the restaurant’s founder/owner Owen Brennan. Rich ard Foster, a prominent businessman in the city, was to dine at Brennan’s that very night, and Owen wanted to honor him with a special one-of-a-kind dessert.

At the time, their father John was operating Brennan’s Processed Potato Company, which was experiencing a surplus of bananas. So, Owen asked Ella to use them in creating something sweet and new.

Rushed for time, Ella, Chef Paul Blangé, and one of the dining room captains set to work. Recalling the way her mother used to brûlée bananas for breakfast, Ella pulled out the brown sugar, butter, and bananas—then added in rum, elevating the delicacy to a tableside flam ing masterpiece, finished lovingly with ice cream. Ba nanas Foster was born.

This delightful morsel of New Orleans culinary histo ry is well-chronicled; shared each night by waiters flam béeing at Brennan’s, included in food tours, found on blogs and in history books. A lesser known story is how the Brennan family’s relationship to bananas goes back to before the famed dessert. The modern Brennans’ an cestors, it turns out, played an important role in bringing bananas to our country in the first place.

It’s been less than two hundred years since the first ba nanas were brought to the United States—where they are now the number one fruit sold today. First intro duced at the 1876 World’s Fair in Philadelphia, the fruit quickly gained popularity across the country.

By 1899, Sicilian immigrants Joseph, Luca, and Felix Vaccaro, together with Salvador D’Antoni, were import ing bananas from La Ceiba, Honduras, for their produce cart in the French Market. This produce cart was the predecessor of the Standard Fruit Company, officially established in 1924 by the Vaccaro brothers. Standard’s competitor, United Fruit Company, was also established in 1899. These two family businesses, often times in collaboration, became New Orleans’s primary import ers of bananas during their time—utilizing Standard’s steamships and United’s railroads. Soon, New Orleans became one of the largest importers of bananas in the United States. Standard continued to grow, and by 1915, the company’s president Joseph Vaccaro was being re ferred to as the “Ice King” because he owned most of the ice factories in New Orleans.

THE FAMILY THAT BROUGHT US BANANAS FOSTER ALSO HELPED BRING BANANAS TO THE UNITED STATES

By Amanda Ogle

Images courtesy of Ralph Brennan Restaurant Group.

Ralph Brennan, owner of The Ralph Brennan Restau rant Group, which includes Brennan’s Restaurant, has family ties to this facet of banana history from his moth er’s side. His great grandfather was one of Standard Fruit Company’s founders, Joseph Vaccaro, and Ralph has fond memories of his mother, Claire Lally, telling him about her travels as a teenager to distant lands on the family’s banana steamships. Claire and her mother, Phi lomena Vaccaro Lally, would stay in the staterooms and visit the banana-producing countries of Latin America. “These were working ships, not cruise ships, but they did have a number of cabins, so my mother would travel with her mother and grandmother to places like Hon duras, where her brother Vincent was working for the company,” said Ralph. But the real stories, the glamor ous stories, he said, are from when they would stop in Havana, Cuba: a pre-Castro playground sparkling with adventure.

“My mother always talked about how wonderful Ha vana was. The nightlife, the fun, the excitement of be ing there,” he said. “She always wanted to take us there,

but never could because by that time, Castro had tak en over.” Lally was enthralled by Havana’s Art Deco and Art Nouveau architecture, the nonstop nightly en tertainment, and a world so different from the one she had left behind. “She talked about having fun in La Ceiba, Honduras, and seeing the banana plantations and such, but it wasn’t as glamorous as Havana for her,” said Ralph. “She really enjoyed Havana as a young girl, because she married my dad when she was about twen ty-five years old, so experiencing this at an early age opened her eyes wide to a world outside of New Orle ans.”

As a child, Ralph remembers driving to Friendship House, a family restaurant between Gulfport, Missis sippi and Biloxi, Mississippi, and seeing the old family steamships. “My mother would get excited when we’d see the ships with the big ‘V’ on the steam pipe repre senting the Vaccaro family name,” he says. “The ships weren’t in our family anymore at this time, but it still made her happy to see them and brought back memories of her travels.”

Eventually, as is the case with lots of family-owned companies that continue to grow and prosper, Standard Fruit Company was acquired by the Castle & Cooke Corporation—later renamed the Dole Food Com pany. Dole Food is still one of the largest importers of bananas to the United States. Luckily for us, Brennan’s Restaurant retains this banana history, and the coveted Bananas Foster dessert, for foodies to embrace for years to come. In fact, seventy-five percent of dessert sales at Brennan’s still come in the form of Bananas Foster— with an average of 18,000 fosters sold quarterly. The restaurant goes through 35,000 pounds of bananas per year. The Vaccaros would be proud. h

brennansneworleans.com

The station on Railway of Standard Fruit & Steamship Co., Honduras, 1925. From the Railways of Central American and the West Indies. By W. Rodney Long.

Photo by Chris Granger..

RESTAURANTS

The Iron Horse Cafe

Head north out of Baton Rouge, and as the Mis sissippi River fades to the west, Route 61 opens up a whole new corridor. I’ve traveled this highway dozens of times, en route to my friends’ camp on Lake St. John in Concordia Parish, but had never veered off into the mystique of the backroads. Word to the wise: take the detour. Going in search of a new restaurant in Jack son, Louisiana, I found myself winding around East Feliciana Parish, no traffic lights in sight. On Audubon Lane, I was certain I’d gone back in time to my pre vious home in wild, wonderful West Vir ginia, with its rolling hills, full autumn color and the crisp air to accompany.

First stop on this midweek field trip: The Iron Horse Café, my precise pursuit being a profile of this new eatery. As I was venturing out, I shared my destination with my neighbor Jen Salmon, who said, “my in-laws live in Jackson. They own the hardware store!” I added this to my itinerary, imagining a traditional ham mers-and-nails shop with friendly staff and maybe some local guidance.

A spotlight from nature told me I had reached my destination; the sign perched at the edge of the red metal roof captured

the sunlight perfectly, illuminating what looked like hammered gold with the vintage letters IRON HORSE, and the first of many signature trains on display. It was an outdoor dining kind of day, a perfect cerulean sky the backdrop to the welcoming patio tables. Instead, to get the full experience, I opted for a seat at the bar.

The challenge of dining alone is: what to order? I get overwhelmed with menus, and a table full of friends gives the op tion of tasting a bit of everything. I was tempted by the wood-fired pizzas; the tiled dome oven had a train mosaiced into the design and was featured front and center by the entrance. The Steam Engine—the namesake pizza loaded with classic toppings plus spicy local hon ey—will have to wait until my next visit.

I sipped from the tall glass of freshbrewed unsweetened ice tea with a smile while I made my final decisions. At my server’s suggestion, I got the 10 Napkin Roast Beef Poboy to accompany my sal ad, which arrived first. The highlight of this generous bowl of mixed greens, splashed with Steen’s cane vinaigrette, was the combination of roasted Roma to matoes and pickled okra. Next time I’ll ask for extra. When my main course ar

rived, I slid my salad bowl to the side for later and realized I would definitely need more napkins to tackle the poboy, juicy with roasted meat and fresh tomato, and cloaked with melted provolone. Knife and fork to the rescue, I disassembled it a bite at a time, enjoying each forkful dunked into the side of au jus. A bas ketful of shoestring fries with the skins on—my French fry ideal—kept me from polishing off the whole poboy, especial ly since I was already thinking ahead to dessert.

Dessert, again, is something I prefer to share. With a bulging takeout container, I couldn’t justify going all-in on their sig nature bread pudding. A dark bottle with a clamp top in the beer cooler caught my eye, and I inquired. Five Farms single batch Irish cream liqueur imported from County Cork, Ireland. This intriguing bottle boasted awards on its label, so I caved in to sipping a sweet finale before taking a self-guided tour of the immacu late new space.

The Café, which opened in October, stands on the grounds of the former Bob by’s Drive Inn at 1427 Charter Street, the main street that runs through Jackson. Its furnishings include stained glass that lets the sun stream through from the din

ing space in the front room to the tufted red leather booths in the bar area. Ornate wood and brick make it all quite cozy, but there is also a designated area, sepa rated by floating walnut doors suspend ed on tracks, called the ‘snug pub,’ plush with leather sofas and loveseats. “This used to be a drive-in,” my server told me. Now it’s a sparkling new café with friendly staff outfitted in crisp gingham shirts and denim aprons.

Before I left, I asked my server about the hardware store. “It’s just up the street, you can’t miss it,” she told me.

Upon arrival at The Felicianas Store, I found Mary Jo Salmon working the cash register. I was way off on my assumption that I would find simply nuts and bolts in this small shop. I was reminded of my summer trip to Greensboro, Vermont where I visited their famed The Willey’s Store, one of the oldest and largest coun try stores in a state famed for such places. The Felicianas Store has a country store vibe and is a mini replica of the giant I explored in Vermont. In addition to lawn tools, a paint section, Big Green Egg and Weber grills, there’s a display of Italian stoves and ranges from iLve and Verona. It’s the Jackson country store meets up town kitchen design showroom.

EAST FELICIANA’S NEWEST EATERY IS ANOTHER MOVE TOWARD “SAVING” OUR SMALL TOWNS

Story by April Hamilton • Photos by Alexandra Kennon

The quick visit turned into a fascinat ing history lesson about Jackson and some feedback on the new restaurant in town. “Every time I pass it, it’s packed. It’s named the Iron Horse Café because of LeRoy Harvey’s [the owner’s] love of steam trains,” she said. “He’s a true his torian. The town exists today because of him.” She shared her vision of a revital ized Jackson and suggested I contact Mr. Harvey for his story.

When I got a hold of him some days later, Harvey told me “We’ve gotten into the restaurant business by accident and by design,” in response to my first ques tion: “How did you decide to open a restaurant?” With a laugh, he told me how his son-in-law Scott Harrington wanted to get into the restaurant business and, through a circuitous way, they were told again and again about the difficulty of the industry. “A long-time restaurant owner told us, ‘If you want to be success ful, know that your wife becomes your mistress because you have to marry the restaurant. You can’t leave it.’”

A native of Jackson, Harvey said, “I’ve seen small towns across America dry ing up. I look at St. Francisville. It’s a beautiful little city, a little jewel around the center city of Baton Rouge. It’s been saved. Jackson needs to be saved. I acci dentally tried to start saving Jackson.” An LSU graduate and veteran of the United States Air Force, Harvey has traveled the world, but continues to dedicate his life to his hometown. In 2016, he was recog

nized for fifty years of service with the Li on’s Club. “We focused on fixing up old historic buildings,” he said. One of those buildings is on the original site of Cente nary College—now the Museum Com plex of the West Florida Parishes, which includes a remarkable display of mod el trains created by the Greater Baton Rouge Model Railroaders. “I have loved trains ever since I was a kid,” he went on. “I have friends in Baton Rouge who col lected model trains, and their wives sug gested they find a place for their trains to get them out of the house.” The collec tion is the draw Harvey envisions for his beloved town. “We need something to complement what they’ve done. Come to Jackson, bring your grandkids!”

On November 14, Harvey told me, “in two days I’ll be eighty-eight years old. Can you believe it? Trying to preserve a town that needs preserving has been a la bor of love. I hope the restaurant will be the catalyst to make good things happen in the town.” When I asked how he’d cel ebrate his birthday he answered, “What’s that song? ‘Staying Alive!’”

I took a drive to Jackson and discov ered so much more than nourishment by roaming off to a new restaurant. I don’t have grandkids, but I’ll be back to explore more and, of course, try the wood-fired pizzas at the Iron Horse Cafe. h

theironhorsela.com eastfelicianatourism.org

From the Iron Horse menu: (top) Chicken Marsala and (bottom) crispy Asian shrimp, calamari, and onion ring appetizers.

Culture

HUNTING SEASON

A Call from the Bayou Beast

or other small bodies of water. The French and Spanish colonists came later, muskets in hand. Since then, the tradition has evolved to be an important part of Louisiana culture. Today, the older generation tells sto ries of ducks once darkening the sky in swarms, as recently as fifty years ago.

Today, due to the grim reality of a declining migratory population, the sport is waning in followers. A rea son for this decline of duck hunters is that today, fewer ducks are making it this far South. The rise in duck hunt ing further north and the shrinking of wetlands has made it harder for migratory ducks to find refuge here. A study conducted by Ducks Unlim ited found that since the 1970s, Loui siana can support three million fewer ducks due to rising sea levels and de clining habitat. At one point in time, Louisiana was the premier destina tion to duck hunt in the nation. Now, she struggles to maintain her coasts, shelter her wildlife, and keep her tra ditions going.

On a table just beside him are his tools: pieces of river cane, rasps and files, pencils, and his famous jig. He has made everything he uses himself. "I refuse to have anything made,” he said. “It would be cheating." His workshop is warm with the scent of cypress shavings and cuts of river cane, all enclosed in shades of brown and metal. Here he works, not tire lessly but passionately, churning out a handful of cane calls a day. When I visited him, our conversation was fre quently interrupted by the squeal of a call. Any chance he gets, Bordelon is practicing, and bettering his practice.

Hunters have been using river cane calls in Louisiana since the 1850s, when visiting Midwesterners were out hunting ducks using a little pipe that sung. After that, the old French men sought to recreate the pipes, using the river cane growing abun

If you were to search for the definition of a traditionalist in the dictionary, you would find the following, "an advo cate of maintaining tradition, especially so as to resist change." I, for one, find this definition limited—failing to ac knowledge the traditionalist’s role in honoring one's culture, keeping alive the experiences of one's youth, passing on what we’ve enjoyed to the new gen eration.

One long-held Louisiana tradition is the practice of duck hunting. Trac ing its origins to the Native American tribes that originally inhabited the land, the pursuit of waterfowl once involved the use of Bolas—a primi tive throwing weapon that consisted of weights tied to the ends of inter connected cords, used to grab ani mals by tangling up their legs. Some reports suggest the Native people also used nets to trap ducks in canals

In certain corners of the state, though, traditionalists hold fast to the hunt and its associated culture. In Avoyelles Parish, you will find a man named Dale Bordelon. A tall, serious, French man—not Cajun, he is sure to point out—Bordelon has made a name for himself as the craftsman behind Bayou Beast Duck Calls. "A duck call is like a fine piece of art or a beautiful person; it just attracts me,” he told me when I made a recent visit to his workshop. This is where you’ll find him most weekends, working on calls made the traditional Louisiana way, with cane. "This is how the old Frenchmen did it," he explained.

AS THE SPORT OF DUCK HUNTING WANES IN LOUISIANA, CALL CRAFTER DALE BORDELON HOLDS FAST TO THE TRADITION Story and photos by Robert Montenegro

dantly throughout the region, which naturally has two holes on each end. They then learned how to widdle a Louisiana soundboard. And before they knew it, they had some of the first cane calls. Dale grew up watching the old timers regale him with hunting stories and showing off their cane calls. "These old people would come to our work, and they'd have their button string looped with a cane call,” he said. “It stays with them like their wives." This experience is how his fasci nation began.

"I will tell you like this, that's my DNA, and that's me,” Bordelon said. It’s been over thirty years now since he start ed making the duck calls himself. "At first, I wasn't terrific. I couldn't make the call sing." But, after years of persistence and love for his heritage, Bordelon is now considered a master. On a good day, he can knock out five duck calls. He doesn't count, and he doesn't need to. He intends to keep doing this until the day he dies. "If I could live like I am doing and going to the camp and hearing their old stories, I would give away my entire bank account. If I knew I would live till ninety doing this, I would give it away tomorrow," he said. “A lot of people are switching from duck hunting to deer hunting due to the fact there are less ducks coming to Louisiana than twenty years ago. Die-hard duck hunters like myself will nev er give it up. If we, Louisiana, were to let go of our hunting traditions, we will lose our heritage. Louisiana has so much duck hunting history. I guess I feel it is up to me to keep it alive, and I love it.” h

Keep up with Bordelon on the Bayou Beast Calls Facebook Page.

When the Black Dog Comes Home

FINDING THE SUNLIGHT IN THE DARK SEASONS

By Ed Cullen

As the morning sun finds the bedroom blinds, I awake with a sense of dread. The feeling of foreboding is slowly washed away by the first cup of coffee, as I lay in bed embracing the new day.

When I was a child, an aunt tipped me to the melancholy, her word, that runs in our family. As she had, I learned to live with this low-grade sadness. We didn’t call it depression, and we wouldn’t talk about free-float ing anxiety for another twenty years.

Winston Churchill called depres sion his black dog. That’s a good name for what millions of us feel on lovely fall days and at holiday time. Black dog conveys a sense of brooding that follows at our heels. But phantom dogs—even big, black ones—can be friendly and protective.

We called our family’s passing affliction “the bots,” a case of mental flu.

Over time, I’ve learned to recognize the cycle. If I am feeling flat, I rely on the comfort of routine to get me through the day. If I am feeling more than flat, I

attack work at hand or make up work to distract my self. The bots are best managed out of doors.

I’ve come to see my black dog as a companion— sometimes lying in a puddle of sunlight in an other wise dark room. Other times, the big, woolly creature

wants to shake off the doldrums and play. In this part of the cycle, I write, seek out people, and find hope in new things.

These thoughts are offered as an observation, not a cure. The bots are one thing. Depression that lasts months or years is a serious illness. It requires more.

Often, we feel down for a reason. These last years have been cause for debilitating anxiety. With COVID, we wait for the other shoe to drop. A Russian madman kills civilians in their homes, schools, churches, hospi tals, and supermarkets. What an un wanted bonus of evil he is in a world beset with homelessness, persecution, and starvation.

Awaking with the bots, I know I need to get outside. The constellation Orion hangs high in the dark sky as I walk to the end of the driveway. The newspaper in its dew-wet, plastic bag assures me that death-tipped missiles slept in their silos as I slept in my bed.

I awake to dread. A little after sunrise, I am sowing lettuce seed. h

Binge-Worthy Books of 2022

OUR ANNUAL ROUNDUP OF THE YEAR'S LOCALLY-INSPIRED LITERATURE

By Chris Turner-Neal

One of our favorite holiday traditions at Country Roads is to ask frequent contributor (former Arts & Entertainment Editor, current Managing Editor of 64 Parishes) Chris Turner-Neal to tell us about some of the best books he's read this year. With a keen perspective on local culture, a razor-sharp wit, and an appreciation for compelling voices—Turner-Neal knows a good thing when he gets his nose buried in it. This year, he's recommended tomes about big brown birds, hogs head chese, and the anxieties of small town life, along with a Gilded Age thriller, a history on the yellow fever epidemic in New Orleans, and the biography of one of Louisana's most iconic gay activists. Read on, friends, then purchase your own copies of these pages, and read more.

Brown Pelican

by Rien Fertel LSU Press

In 2013, the then-New Orleans Hornets announced they would rebrand as the Pelicans, giving themselves a local identity after their arrival from Char lotte and avoiding the eternally fish-out-of-water branding of the Utah Jazz. The overall initial reaction was horror—yes, the brown pelican is the state bird, but surely this feathered frump didn’t have the agility, the verve, the killer spirit an effective mascot needs? The naysayers, myself among them, were quickly shushed by a viral video showing a pelican casually eating a live pigeon: they were indeed hardcore.

Pelicans contain, along with pigeons, multitudes, as readers of Rien Fer tel’s Brown Pelican will discover. A muse for Walter Anderson, a victim of the Belle Époque fashion craze for plumage, one of the species whose DDT-ravaged populations inspired the conservationist classic Silent Spring, and a medieval symbol of Christ—the “seine with the brain” has left a path through Western civilization that deserves study and celebration. Fertel clearly had fun following the pelican’s “career” through library and swamp, and the resulting blend of history, culture, and anecdote has the appealing energy of a conversation with someone who has just learned something in teresting. (Aristotle, who deserves more credit for whimsy, thought pelicans contained little furnaces that let them digest bivalves.) As an added conve nience, the book is printed in a small format, suitable for sliding into the top of stockings or carrying on a birding outing. lsupress.org.

Southern and Smoked by Jarred Zeringue Arcadia Publishing

As a dedicated eater of organ meats, I can tell you truthfully that Jarred Zeringue’s head cheese is some of the best animal debris I’ve ever eaten. In a state where most people think they can cook and many of them are correct, his work stands out. I can’t say that I think the hogs are proud to end up in his kitchen, but they have no cause to be insulted. Zeringue now runs Wayne Jacob’s Smokehouse, a LaPlace institution bouncing back from Hurri cane Ida and dispensing magnificent meat to those in the know.

Zeringue’s cookbook Southern and Smoked puts Cajun cooking in the context of the re cent enthusiasm among cooks, eaters, and food writers for the seasonality of food. Yeah, sure, you can get [fruit/vegetable] any time of the year, flown in from a country you’ve nev er visited—or you can relax into the rhythm of the seasons, harvests following each other with the gentle, anticipatory rhythm of the liturgical calendar. This seasonal approach to a familiar cuisine is related in an appealingly straightforward voice that inspires trust—“Peo ple either love liver or they don’t. I don’t, so I tried smoking it.” And yes, the book included the recipe for head cheese.

(Full disclosure: I’m very casually acquainted with Zeringue, and an article about his smokehouse appeared in both 64 Parishes and an earlier edition of Country Roads. You know, I hope, that I would never lie about offal.) arcadiapublishing.com.

We Were Angry

by Jennifer S. Davis Press 53

Several years after we’d both moved away, my father and I drove through the town I grew up in. He looked out over the clots of fast-food joints and ser vice stations and said, medi tatively, “This is a crappy little burg, isn’t it?” Jennifer Davis’s We Were Angry, a collection of connected stories, takes place in a town like that, one of those “God, people live here” places that makes you decide to buy gas further down the road. Da vis’s characters suffer from the corrosion of boredom and lim ited opportunities: one woman chooses between two bars across the street from each other, while another takes a course in bird identification in a failed attempt to “impress a man who knew the names of all living things except her.”

Because they know, consciously or merely instinctually, that they are almost trapped, Davis’s characters panic. It would be easy to make their frantic choices— feigning cancer, abandoning a sibling at an amusement park—farcical, but their au thor’s insight into why and how people on the ropes come up swinging makes them sad, compelling, and chillingly relatable. The added interweaving of the stories, with the protagonist of one story showing up as side characters or the subject of gossip in another, add to the small-town claustrophobia and tighten the net around the charac ters: they may be isolated, but they don’t have privacy. I rooted for most of these peo ple, but I wouldn’t bet on them. press53.com.

The Seamstress of New Orleans

by Diane C. McPhail Kensington Publishing Corp.

Part thriller and part domestic drama, The Seamstress of New Orleans is an unusual but worthwhile historical novel. It takes place in 1899 and 1900, a historical dead zone as far as the American imagination is concerned: we like the Civil War and we like the Jazz Age, but this middle period of reconstruction and industrialization attracts fewer storytellers. The central characters, one a widow and the other an abandoned wife who rounds herself up to a widow for respectability, are unusual in their very normality: they’re not rebels chafing against the rules governing Gilded Age female behavior but working as effectively as they can within the roles they occupy. The thoughtful reader will relate to them all the more because of it—for every trailblazer, there are a dozen more people doing their best with what they can.

The novel also thoughtfully creates female spaces. Luncheons, charities, sewing rooms, and nurseries: the central charac ters move through spaces coded for—and ruled by—women. They leave them when they must, but when their errands are done, they return to the closed and or derly spaces in which they have learned to thrive. (Lest I make this novel sound sedate, there’s a murder in the first five pages, an organized crime shakedown, and an all-female Mardi Gras krewe.) There are faults—for example, race is never mentioned in a novel that takes place shortly before the Robert Charles riots killed over two dozen—but at its best, the story and its words are smooth as silk. kensingtonbooks.com.

Necropolis: Disease, Power, and Capitalism in the

Cotton Kingdom

by Kathryn Olivarius Harvard University Press

If Kathryn Olivarius’s Necropolis had come out ten years ago, COVID-19 would have taken the same course, probably, but she would have had the satisfaction of waving her book in the air and yelling, “See?!” Wry and unsparing, this history of social attitudes around the constant yellow fever out breaks in and around New Orleans informs, shocks, and entertains readers. Olivarius effectively argues that cul tural reactions to yellow fever shaped the development of New Orleans’s economic role as the hub for slave-harvested cotton. New white arrivals who lived through the dis ease, becoming “acclimated,” were regarded as hardy survi vors, trustworthy and credit worthy; meanwhile, the end less torrent of Africans forced to labor in the plantations that supplied cotton to New Orleans’s entrepots was justified by the false but conve nient argument that they were immune. (Inconvenient Black deaths from yellow fever were blamed on the then-medically-indistinguishable dengue or malaria.) Olivarius has the narrative historian’s ear for turns of phrase, both her own (New Orleans was “more bilgewater than backwater”) and others’ (a British traveler writes that yellow fe ver and New Orleans were “as inseparable as ham and chicken.”) The resulting work is challenging and engrossing—as well as a powerful argument for public health literacy. hup.harvard.edu.

Political Animal: The Life and Times of Stewart Butler

by Frank

Perez University of Mississippi Press

The best biographies give you a sense of both the trajectory of a life and the substance of the person who lived it; if the subject is particularly engaging, you can walk away with a new friend (even if the relationship might be a little one-sided). The Stewart Butler who emerges from Perez’s pages—often in his own words, liberally quoted—is someone you’d love to have on your side. Fortunately, and be fore I realized it, I did.

Though we get to know and like Butler—and to envy his road trips and time in pre-state Alaska—in the first section of the book, we see him blossom later, as he finds his place as an activist. (As someone who will be thirty-eight years old by the time this is published, I drew enormous comfort from the fact that Butler turns forty on page 47 of this book.) Butler’s fight for fair treatment for queer peo ple in the city and the country outlasted him and was full of two steps forward, one step back progress, but it also gave purpose and shape to a long and eventful life that, though the tallies may have been close, seems to have seen more joy than pain.

upress.state.ms.us.

The Great Return

By Suzanne Ferrara

“Igot teary-eyed when the plane was landing in Palermo. I’ve ar rived! This is where I was sup posed to go all along; I finally made the journey back. I came and saw it for my grandparents. I came and saw it for them.”

Sandy Provenzano Trupiano, of Marrero, Louisiana, is among the growing number of Louisiana Sicilian Americans, including my self, making the journey to the land our an cestors left behind nearly a century ago.

This windfall of discovery parallels the rap id emergence of newly-formed Sicilian social groups dotting the state, as well as the explo sion of Louisianans receiving Italian dual cit izenships. “Dual citizenships have increased two hundred percent in just one year! All of these areas are taking off,” says Charles Mar sala, President of the American-Italian Fed eration of the Southeast. “Internet platforms, the ease of travel, and word of mouth are all major drivers; however, pride in heritage and a strong drive to connect with long distance relatives outweighs all of these factors, by far.”

One could say this phenomenon would baffle our destitute forefathers, who coura geously left their perpetually-plagued land broken-hearted in an effort to earn an honest living. This honest living was nearly 6,000 miles away from everything familiar to them.

Our migratory return has an indisputable undercurrent; this twen ty-first-century rite of passage is both emotional and individualistic. The driving force behind Trupiano’s unwavering pursuit was a deep desire to better understand herself and what was running through her veins.

“Why am I this way?” she asks. “There’s a genetic thread. I believe my strength and that of my kids derived from these strong, spirited individu als. My grandmother Josephine had a sixth-grade education and was ob sessed with personal, financial achievement. She amassed a small fortune in the early 1900s, and owned and operated a franchise.”

Helena Midkiff, Trupiano’s first cousin from Metairie, recently made a separate voyage with her Sicilian husband by her side. The two women share the same great-grandfather, Pietro Briguglio. But Midkiff’s journey was less about self-discovery than about satisfying her intense curiosity.

“You are changed. It was always a mystery, and the mystery was solved. I was fulfilled and got an inner peace,” she says. Midkiff was blown away by how explicitly content her relatives still living in Contessa were. “They were the happiest people I ever met, and I thought, ‘If only my grandmother was here to see this’. I couldn’t believe that I was physically here.”

For Baton Rouge’s Jennifer Betbeze, the voyage was a chance to ‘resur rect’ her deceased grandmother, Lena, with whom she shared a profound bond. “It was like a resurrection because she died not too long before I went on the trip. I wanted to get closer to her.” Her voice cracking, Betbeze paus es. “I wanted to get closer to all those stories she told me about; the stories were very important to her, and they became special to me. I wanted the

reality,

Bryan Centanni says his trip to Sicily was as sisted by fate. “My sister and I couldn’t believe it! We began hugging each other. We were so excited as the island came into view from our ferryboat.”

No one in his River Ridge party—Bryan, his wife, his sister—tried to contact possible relatives before their arrival in Alia. It was a last minute trip. Centanni had a list of names in his pocket, and as the trio began walking around Alia, destiny took the wheel. “We bumped into three elderly men, and they didn’t speak En glish. They motioned us to follow them, and we walked up to this house, and a woman was speaking Italian from her third-story window. Lo and behold, this lady was my cousin, Lucia.” From there, it was pure ancestral magic. “We went inside and everyone kissed us on both cheeks,” continues Centanni. “We drank espresso and homemade wine. We laughed a lot. It was truly awesome; just indescribable.” Cen tanni says next to getting married, his Sicilian encounter was “the highlight of my life! I’m re turning with my children because I want them to have this great experience. It’s important.”

Twenty-four-year old Patrick Campesi, the National Vice-President of the Young Profes sional Italians, wears the Italian horn around his neck and a lapel pin displaying both the Amer ican and Sicilian flags. The White Castle real estate entrepreneur proudly delivers a Sicilian truism often repeated by his late grandfather

I wanted to see it for myself. I finally felt like I understood her so much more than I did [before].”

REVIVAL IN LOUISIANA-SICILIAN PRIDE, DESCENDANTS OF 19TH CENTURY ITALIAN IMMIGRANTS ARE VISITING THEIR ANCESTORS' HOMELAND

Ross Campesi, Sr: “La famillia prima di tutto, which means ‘family always first’.”

“We were very close. I always felt loved when I was with him. He gave me guidance and told me about his life. He would pick me up in his truck and drive along the levee, while showing me all the family property.” Campesi chuckles as he recalls his grandfather’s sense of hu mor. “He would dip his pinky finger in his espresso or wine when I was a toddler and put it on my tongue, and it worked! Because today I love both.”

A man of his word, the family pa triarch painstakingly plucked his hard-working family out of the sugar cane fields of Iberville Parish. “He elevat ed us from just being mere farmers to be coming successful business owners that would provide for generations to come.”

Campesi attributes his grandfather’s tri umphs to the resolute Sicilian dogmas of hard work, honesty, and family. It’s these same principles that drove the young Campesi to make the transatlantic jour ney to the mother country. “Going to Poggioreale was about paying homage to my grandfather.”

Campesi is currently in the process of seeking a dual citizenship so that he can help revitalize the earthquake-ravaged

Poggioreale. “I want to help them create economic stimulus for their redevelop ment,” he says. “I believe it’s the right thing to do to give back. I want to honor my family’s sacrifice and what makes me a Campesi.”

Campesi’s youthful enthusiasm and love for the motherland is uncannily similar to that of my late father, Paul Fer rara. My dad was the son of two Sicilian immigrants who planted roots in the New Orleans’ French Quarter in the late 1920s. Though I never had the chance to meet them, the desire to connect with my grandparents and the land from whence they came began simmering in my early childhood, the flame growing with each passing day.

My return to Contessa Entellina was inevitable. I’ve always known that the spirit of my great-grandparents, grand parents, and father lives in me—and that it stems from the mountainous territory of the ‘Valle del Belice’.

The hypnotic topography of the land scape, though breathtaking, pales in comparison to the people who live there, especially my Sicilian relatives who, to me, are the epitome of a pure and infinite love that has survived the passage of time.

My father always told me, “Contessa is paradise.” Now, I understand. Con tessa is my heaven on earth, and saying goodbye was like waking from a dream. I never expected the flood of emotions that suddenly came over me while leaving my cousin’s home. It was the surreal feeling of being torn away from the people and place that I deeply loved.

This explosive Sicilian return, I be lieve, will continue to open hearts. Mid kiff describes it this way: “We all want something more.” For our ancestors, that something more spelled survival; for us, it’s a reunion of blood. It’s also about clo sure—the unfulfilled embrace that our ancestors longed for all their lives is tak ing place, through us, a century later.

La famiglia prima di tutto. h

Images: Top left: "Contessa Entellina, 'The Mother Land,'" by Suzanne Ferrara. From left to right: (1) All of Peitro Briguglio's children, including Sandy Povenzano Trupiano’s grandmother Josephine (second from right) and Helen Midkiff's grandmother Lena (far right). Courtesy of Briguglio family. (2) Photo of author (second from right in red dress) meeting her Ferrara cousins in Contessa Entellina. Courtesy of author. (3) Author's grandfather Paulo Ferrara’s U.S.Citizenship Naturalization Card. Courtesy of author. (4) Patrick Campesi holding sketches of his late grandfather Ross Campesi, by Suzanne Ferrara. (5) Sandy Provenzano Trupiano (left) with cousin Helen Midkiff holding a photo of their late great-grandfather Pietro Briguglio, by Suzanne Ferrara.

Escapes

'TIS THE SEASON

Farming Holiday Magic

FINDING LOUISIANA'S CHRISTMAS TREE

By Jordan LaHaye Fontenot

For my parents, my first Christmas marked eleven sleepless months with a child who hated almost everything except riding on the four-wheeler. When they started receiving, from other family members, “Baby’s First Christmas” ornaments, they decided they couldn’t put it off any longer—they needed to put up a tree. “I’ve got this,” my dad told my mom. He plopped me in front of him on the four-wheeler seat, and together we drove into the pasture. The pine tree he determined “perfect,” and chopped down to a reasonable size for the living room has lived on in family lore for twen ty-five years now as “the ugliest Charlie Brown tree you ever saw”. Of course, I don’t remember the trip or the tree, but this is one of my favorite stories.

The next December, my parents gathered the cour age to bring me and my new little brother to the Christmas tree farm about an hour away, in Grant, Louisiana. The photographic evidence of this visit still exists: two chunky toddlers in red Christmas sweaters sitting between rows of far fancier pines than our tree the year prior.

That year, 1997, was the same that Gray and Mol lie Anderson officially took over Grant Christmas Tree Farm, which Mollie’s parents had operated since 1983.

Twenty-five years later, when I return to the proper ty—found along the windy rural backroads of Central Louisiana—I drive beneath a “Welcome” sign held by two wooden cut-out gnomes, dangling from the branches of a live oak.

Small log cabins dot the front yard—bathrooms, a concession stand, the gift shop—along with exhibits of

various antique farming mechanisms. There’s a small collie, Julie, trotting around, a horse named Sailor studying the guests from her pen, and Little Girl the donkey, hee-hawing in the distance. An incredible pet ting zoo—where baby goats had been born every day of the week prior to my visit—is delightfully integrated with the children’s playground. There’s even a “Tower of Baabel”—climb-able by kids, human and animal alike.

Onsite, the Andersons also keep over two hundred bee boxes for honey harvesting; grow crops of pump kins, sugar cane, sunflowers, and zinnas; and operate a fully functional old-fashioned cane syrup mill—which sweetens the air, commingling with the scents of ever greens.

Because, of course, there are also the trees. As far the eye can see—almost one hundred acres of tall

Clarke Gernon (left) working on his Christmas tree farm at Shady Pond in Pearl River, which he started in 1979.

Photo by Linda Duhon. Courtesy of Clarke Gernon.

trees, baby trees, fat trees, skinny trees, trees with golden tips, trees that look almost blue. All carefully trimmed into that symbolic Christ mas cone. It’s disorienting and magical, the way they are all lined up—extending by the thou sand-fold into the horizon.

Sitting on a bench in the outdoor classroom, I join about seventy-five first graders on a field trip to learn about all of the work involved in growing Louisiana Christmas trees. Mollie, her Pine Belt twang extending a special level of ex pertise, starts at the beginning: “How do you get a baby Christmas tree?” One little boy, full of confidence, blurts out: “seeds!” Actually, Mollie explains, these trees don’t make seeds! One lit tle girl tries for “water” before another nails it: “branches!”

She explains that every year, around Valen tine’s Day, Gray and his five-person team go out and collect about sixty-thousand cuttings (elicit ing a “wowwww” from the audience) from the mature trees already on their farm—a process that takes about a month. From there, each cut ting must be trimmed by hand, treated with a root stimulator, and planted in a tray with 125 other cuttings. By March, the Grant Farms on site nursery is filled. Trees are watered every day, and by May, hopefully about eighty percent will have grown roots. At this point, the baby trees are transferred to pots, where they will live and grow for about a year, before being transferred to a larger pot to grow for another year. Then, if all goes according to plan, the two-year-old tree has earned a spot in the field—where it will grow for three more years before finally meeting its long-awaited purpose as the centerpiece of some family’s holiday celebration.

The History of the Christmas Tree Industry in Louisiana

Some of the first experiments in Christmas tree agriculture in Louisiana took place in the 1950s and 1960s. Prior to this, trees were mostly shipped into the region from Northern farms—where cooler, drier, higher altitude climates are more suitable to growing the trees people think of as Christmas trees.

With the second half of the twentieth century, though, came a handful of daring Louisiana foresters, scientists, and farmers who were increasingly intrigued by the emerging efforts of nearby states to develop Christmas tree cultivars that survived and even thrived in the South. In 1956, Alex andria’s Optimist Club consulted with a forester and agron omist about five species of trees that had been successful in Alabama; they planted four-thousand of them near Pineville

to use for their annual Christmas tree sale (which previously sourced trees from the usual Northern suspects). The Town Talk, which had published the announcement, never report ed any updates—suggesting it may have been a failure, as many of these early attempts were.

At the time, the LSU School of Forestry and Wildlife Management was doing early research on several species to determine which would be most likely to succeed, and which would yield the greatest economic returns for farmers. At the beginning, the studies—conducted at the University’s Dean Lee Forest Experimentation Station—indicated Virginia Pine as the most promising, along with Eastern Red Cedar, Arizona Cypress, and Shortleaf Pine.

In 1964, the Louisiana Forestry Commission made some

Shady Pond Tree Farm, one of Louisiana's oldest Christmas tree farms, from above. Photo by Bryan McCauley of Cox Media. Courtesy of Clarke Gernon.

eight hundred trees ready for market.

That same year, the Monroe News-Star reported that the industry in Louisiana had finally reached a point of economic feasibility. Presentations and workshops were being held across the region, students participating in 4-H were doing projects on Christmas trees, and farmers everywhere—especially in the Northshore areas and in Central-North Louisiana—were planting seedlings. In 1976, a Homer newspaper called The Guardian-Journal reported that there were approximately 100,000 Christ mas trees growing between Louisiana and Mississippi, which had resulted in the formation of the Louisiana-Mississippi Christmas Tree Growers Association (today called the Southern Christmas Tree Growers Association). Describing the response of consumers, the reporter wrote: “Louisiana people love to have Louisiana-grown trees.”

Exotic Trees

At this point, Virginia Pine was the most popular tree grown across the region, by far. They were best suited to the Louisiana climate, and they grew relatively quickly—up to six feet in just three years.

Clarke Gernon, though, wasn’t dazzled by the Virginia Pine. He found it medio cre when compared to the northern varieties—not good enough simply because it was what grew easily here. These were Christmas trees we were talking about! He wanted to grow something here that was magical.

Gernon started growing Christmas trees in 1979, shortly after inheriting his family property, Shady Pond, in Pearl River. He was fulfilling a childhood dream, sparked one Christmas years before when at age eleven he and his mother had been unable to source a tree from any of the stores for miles around. When they got home, he walked into the woods beside their home, got a cross saw, and took down a pine tree. “Jordan, that was the ugliest Christmas tree I ever saw in my whole life. But we all loved it,” he said.

After being disappointed by his first batch of Virginia Pines, Gernon started think ing more creatively. “I committed myself to move into exotic trees,” he said. He placed orders for small amounts of several different varieties and promptly transformed his farm into an experimentation hub. “As much as I could come up with, we would try it,” he said. “And many of them succeeded. Some did not. But many of them did.” The names read like those of characters in a fantasy novel: Deodar Cedar. King William’s Pine. Silver Smoke. Blue Ice. Southern White Pine. Gold Cup. “The result of doing that was that Mother Nature forced us to create a botanical display of all the different trees. Which, as it developed, became stunningly beautiful.”

Gernon was one of the first Louisiana tree farmers to bring in exotics, and over forty years later Shady Pond remains one of the largest and most diverse Christmas tree op erations in the region. Over the last four decades, he’s also served in various positions within the Southern Christmas Tree Association and the National Christmas Tree Association, often acting as a spokesperson in media outlets ranging from the Times Picayune to the Today Show.

At Shady Pond, Gernon’s standardized and customized his planting process to the point where “the loss of even a single tree is rare” today, thanks to a dedicated schedule of soil cultivation—by way of planting clay and iron peas, field burning, and mixing in a carefully prepared fertilizer mixture. Then, there is plowing, disking, subsoiling, harrowing. All of this is before the tree is even placed in the dirt. Gernon, a mechan

Trees of varying ages and species growing at Grant Tree Farm. Photo by Jordan LaHaye Fontenot.

Around 1988, Gernon joined other Louisiana growers in experimenting with a new species of Christmas tree—the Leyland Cypress. A hybrid tree that was the result of an accidental cross-pollination, the Leyland was discovered in 1888 by C.J. Leyland at Leighton Hall in the South of Wales. After years of genetic modifications and develop ment, the tree made its way to the United States during the 1940s—though its use as a Christmas tree was not widely-advertised until the 1980s, when growers in Louisiana brought seedlings onto their farms.

The success was immediate, the Leyland Cypress—particularly the Leighton Green cultivar— quickly overtook the Virginia Pine as a Louisiana farmer’s favorite. Dis ease-resistant, the tree grew in about half the time it took the pine—delivering a supe rior product much quicker. For consumers, the tree was attractive for its soft, shed-re sistant foliage; its dark green color; and its lack of a strong scent—desirable especially for people with allergies.

A few years later, another strong alternative emerged when a small group of seed lings arrived for experimentation in St. Tammany Parish, East Baton Rouge Parish, and St. Helena Parish. The Carolina Sapphire was a variation of the Arizona Cypress already being grown throughout Louisiana—but with the remarkably distinct physi cal features of dense, “lacy” foliage; tiny yellow flowers; and a stunning blue color. For customers who preferred a tree with an aroma, the Sapphire emitted a fresh, lemony, minty scent.

For decades, the Sapphire was considered by many to be a novelty—“Some people found it too blue,” said Dr. Cornelis F. de Hoop, an Associate Professor in the Louisi ana Forest Products Development Center at the LSU AgCenter. Because it adapted well to the Louisiana climate, most farmers started growing them—though in smaller numbers than the more “traditional” Leyland Cypress and Virginia Pine.

In recent years, though, farmers have begun to sell more Carolina Sapphires than Leylands as a result of a fungal blight that has devastated the Louisiana Leyland pop ulation. Because the Leyland is a clone, without any genetic diversity, every tree be comes susceptible. This year for the first time, the Louisiana State University Christ mas Tree Sale, conducted by the Society of American Foresters Student Chapter, will sell only Sapphires.

De Hoop, the chapter’s faculty advisor, said that the fungus affects big, foot-long sections of the trees—turning the needles yellow before they inevitably die. “They be come worthless as a Christmas tree at that point,” he said. “It’s an airborne fungus. There’s really not anything to be done about it.”

Family Christmas Tree Farms

One element of the Christmas tree industry's beauty in Louisiana's agricultural econo my was its suitability as a small-scale endeavor, as a supplemental income for property owners of all sorts. In addition to the larger scale estates like Shady Pond and Grant Farms are countless smaller, family-fostered, community-driven Christmas tree grow ing businesses.

Leslie Hollis started growing Christmas trees the same year that Gernon did. A for ester by training, Hollis had always been interested in agriculture, and jumped on the Louisiana Christmas tree train with everyone else back in 1979. “There were several people starting small choose-and-cut Christmas tree farms back in the eighties, and most of them have dissolved or discontinued, but we’re still doing it.”

Growing mainly Virginia Pine and Leyland Cypress in Minden, Louisiana, Hollis Christmas Tree Farm welcomes the same families year after year, some of the same

ical engineer by trade, modified a standard tree trimmer to better serve his purpose:

family to cut down, something fun to do all together.

Growing Christmas trees in South Louisiana is more challenging than in the Central/Northern parts of the state, noted Janet. To prevent the trees’ roots from getting too wet in the South Louisiana clay soil, Mark planted on raised rows, like sugarcane, so that water could easily drain. Another challenge of living on the lower side of the state is the effect ricanes, which caused this year’s crop of trees (which have been growing for the past three years) to be replanted three different times. “They’ve been traumatized,” she said. “It’s interesting to see how weather can control the growth of a tree. You can look down the row and see when the hurricane hit, where it created a whole emp ty line of branches.” She’ll be selling these trees at a discounted

Because their property is not large, and is “long and skinny,” the Tassins employ a strict sign-up process for visiting fam ilies—limiting arrivals to three families every thirty minutes (They can stay as long as they like, clarified Janet, but this con trols it a little bit.). “We make it a much more personal experi

Tearfully, Janet explained that the whole endeavor has been such a gift, a chance to relive some of her favorite memories with her children through other family’s traditions. “I see so many of these families creating a tradition that we had with our chil

Back at Shady Pond, Gernon has been working on a ma jor new development for the Louisiana Christmas Tree in dustry. “I’ve created a new tree,” he told me.

Officially registered with the Royal Horticultural So ciety in England, the Leighton Green-Gernon cultivar of the Leyland Cypress is Gernon’s solution to the now dis ease-ridden Louisiana Leyland Cypress. “It is complete ly disease-resistant,” he said, explaining that this varia tion of the Leighton Green creates a protective coating of wax, which kept pathogens out. “This tree can elim the use of pesticides at Christmas tree farms,” he said excitedly.

It all began in 2013, when Gernon noticed that one of his Leighton Greens wasn’t being affected, at all, by the disease ravaging the rest of his crop. Gernon proceeded to clone the tree, creating about three hundred cuttings to test against his normal crop. By the end of the summer of 2015, all of the common Leylands were dead. The cloned trees were picture perfect. “To be able to watch Dar win’s law before your very eyes like that was an honor,” he said.

With the assistance of geneticist Dr. John Frampton from North Carolina State University in Ra leigh, Gernon started studying genetics, and together they con ducted more field trials. When he informed the Royal Horticultur al Society of the tree’s existence, “The British reacted very, very strongly, in a very positive way. I was giving them their tree back.”

Since 2018, Gernon sells a few of his Leighton Green-Gernons to customers every year. In early 2023, plans are underway for Mis sissippi State University to start prop agating the tree in their greenhouses—al lowing for distribution beyond Pearl River and to the rest of the South.

“This whole thing has become such a journey for me,” Gernon told me. “And you gotta understand, I’m older than dirt. This is not how I expected to spend my golden years. But

Christmas Magic

Since their early beginnings, Louisiana Christmas tree farms have benefitted from the branding of “cutting down your own Christmas tree” as an experi ence—incorporating the holiday trap pings of hot chocolate, carol-singing, train-riding, ornament-decorating, and more. More than any other crop in the world, the Christmas tree industry is sustained on pure nostalgia, sentimen tality, and symbolism.

When I asked farmers about these

unique qualities of their chosen crop, almost every single one of them spoke about the beauty of tradition, of watch ing a family return year after year to spend this holiday time together. “We’ve had couples get engaged out here,” said Janet Tassin. “And then they come back later, and they have children. Then there are older couples—like their kids were teenagers and kind of grew up, got out of the house. We won’t see them for a few years. And then they’re back, with

the grandkids.” One family, she told me, came the first year Tassin Tree Farms was open, and they found a bird’s nest in the tree. “So then, the children believed there are birds’ nests in all Christmas trees,” she said. “So, every year, I collect a bird’s nest during the year and plant it in their tree.”

While speaking with Mollie An derson at Grant Farms, an old woman walked up to us to ask a question about tagging trees. Mollie knew her name,

and exactly what sort of tree she would be looking for that day. She turned to me to let me know that she was one of their generational “regulars”—one of the customers who had been coming to Grant Farms for decades, who now came with three or four carloads of her children and grandchildren and niec es and nephews. “It’s everything,” said Mollie.

This generational cycle calls to mind a theory of Gernon’s on how the evergreen came to have such symbolic power in the first place. Going back to the Dru ids, who history tells us designated the evergreen as the most “elite” of trees— Gernon said he believes the evergreen proved to them that “the world cannot die”. When the other trees dropped their leaves, becoming skeletons each win ter, the pines and the firs and the cedars stayed true. “It proves that there will be a future, that the cycle will start over.” h

Most Louisiana Christmas Tree Farms open the day after Thanksgiving, and sell out quickly. Make your plans now!

grantchristmastreefarm.com cgernon.com hollischristmastreefarm.com windyhillsfarm.com tassinchristmastrees.com

Janet and Mark Tassin's two daughters, "Lin and Em,"—who inspired their parents to start a tree farm in 2013. Photo courtesy of Janet Tassin.

Directory of Merchants

Albany, LA

Livingston Parish CVB 29

Arabi, LA

St. Bernard Parish Tourist Commission 19

Baton Rouge, LA

Allwood Furniture 14 Alzheimer’s Ser vice of the Capital Area 59

Artistry of Light 48

Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre 30 Becky Parrish Advance Skincare 56

Blue Cross Blue Shield 12 BREC 47

Calandro’s Select Cellars 11 East Baton Rouge Parish Librar y 64

Elizabethan Gallery 55 Lagniappe Antiques 57

Louisiana Public Broadcasting 61 Manship Theatre 21 Opera Louisiane 48 Oxbow Rum Distiller y 50 Pinetta’s European Restaurant 55

Wilson & Wilson Attorneys, LLC 45

Window World of Baton Rouge 6 WRKF 89.3 FM 61

Brookhaven, MS Brookhaven Tourism Council 15

Ferriday, LA Brakenridge Furniture 33

Fredericksburg, TX Visit Fredericksburg 3

Grand Isle, LA Grand Isle Tourism Department 56

Hammond, LA Tangipahoa Parish CVB 63

Jackson, LA

Har vey Enterprises 35 McDonald Pharmacy 35 Olive Branch Furniture & Accents 35 The Iron Horse Restaurant 35

Jackson, MS Visit Mississippi 5

Lafayette, LA Allwood Furniture 14

Livingston, LA Livingston Parish Library 28

Mandeville, LA St. Tammany Parish Tourist Commission 32

Mansura, LA Avoyelles Tourism Commission 13

Morgan City, L A Cajun Coast CVB 53

Natchitoches, LA Natchitoches Area CVB

Natchez, MS

Brakenridge Furniture 27 Crye-Leike Stedman Realtors 24, 26, 55

Katie’s Ladies Apparel 57 Live Oak Construction 61 Monmouth Historic Inn 23 Murray Land & Homes Realty 9 Natchez City Sightseeing 22 Natchez Convention Promotion Commission 25 Natchez Olive Market 59 Natchez Pilgrimage Tours 27 Olivina Boutique 25 United Mississippi Bank 24

New Orleans, LA

The Historic New Orleans Collection 16, 17 New Orleans Opera Association 51

New Roads, LA Arts Council of Pointe Coupée 57 City of New Roads 50 Pointe Coupée Office of Tourism 2

Opelousas, LA

St. Landr y Parish Tourist Commission 45

Plaquemine, LA

Iber ville Parish Tourism Department 31

Port Allen, LA

West Baton Rouge CVB 20 West Baton Rouge Museum 47

Scott, LA

Bob’s Tree Preservation 30

Sorrento, LA

Ascension Parish Tourism Commission 33

St. Francisville, LA

Artistry of Light 48

Birds of a Feather 7

The CC Lockwood Gallery 53

Grandmother’s Buttons 33 The Magnolia Cafe 32 Stems Boutique Florist 43

Town of St. Francisville 51 West Feliciana Animal Humane Society 57

Zachary, L A

Lane Regional Medical Center 18

eighty-one years old, Henry was born in Leonville, in St. Landry Parish; a sharecropper’s daughter and one of six children. “And I’m not old—I asked for longevity,” Hen ry insisted, laughing. “I don’t care. Give me all the years that I can have …There's no limit as to what you can do in one lifetime.” She is among a dwindling number of individuals who still have vivid memories of growing up within the sharecropping economy, and all the hard ships that came with it.

“When I was younger, we didn't have copy machines, and didn't have access to many books. I didn't see a Black artist, you know,” Henry said, matter-of-factly. “You thought about leaving the countryside, but to go where? Because all you could see was people working in the fields, and sugar cane, and cotton, and potatoes, and corn … And everybody was doing the same thing. You dated a farmer, you married a farmer, and you went in the field, not knowing if you was going to ever get out. But you never even thought about getting out of that,

picking cotton or digging potatoes or whatever.”

It was an arduous lifestyle, but Henry looks back on her childhood with gratitude, even abundance. “We weren't poor people. I never was poor, and I don’t plan to be poor. You understand? … You had a beautiful mom and a dad and loving family. The neighbors were cordial to each other. So, you can’t equate that with money.”

In her artwork, Henry reflects on many of her expe riences—playing her part in preserving a fading way of life. “It’s what I perceive about my life. And what I en joyed in my life. Even if it was part of sadness, I still put it on the canvas. Because that brings me peace and com fort. It’s a sense of healing…The healing process, you have to go through all of that. Some of the paintings that I do, it takes a while, because I have to kind of like go within myself and find a quiet place, a soft place to fall.”

She has forged this quiet place, an artist’s refuge, in a special part of her yard in Opelousas where she doesn’t mow the grass, turning the land back over to the flowers

at the Acadiana Center for the Arts as part of the exhi bition Poetics of Selfhood / Poétique de l’Ipséité, a project by the ACA in partnership with La Station Culturelle, Fort de France, Martinique. The exhibit highlights five artists’ individual unique experiences as Creole and Francophone individuals from around the world, with a goal to “expand the understanding of Creole identity as a worldwide cultural identity”. While Henry’s work and interpretation of what it means to be “Creolité” repre sent a perspective from Louisiana and the United States, Poetics of Selfhood / Poétique de l’Ipséité also includes the work of Gwladys Gambie and Jérémie Priam from Mar tinique, Tabita Rezaire from Guyana, and Modou Di eng Yacine from Senegal and the United States.

Henry says she feels “elated” to represent Louisiana and honored to serve as the only artist in the exhibition based exclusively in the United States. “We’re all striving for the same thing, right? Preserving what? Our culture and our heritage,” she emphasized. “Even though we’re from afar, the mindset was the same, all the same. Even if we’re halfway across the world, because why? We are all connected, no matter where we are.” h

Henry’s work will be on display as part of the exhibition Poetics of Selfhood/Poétique de L’Ipésité at the Acadiana Center for the Arts until January 14, 2023. Learn more at acadianacenterforthearts.org.

Rebecca D. Henry, “Just the Three of Us,” acrylic on canvas. Courtesy of the Acadiana Center for the Arts.