NEW ORLEANS (AP) – A moderate carnival season begins Wednesday after the coronavirus pandemic puts an end to the balls and street parades that attract thousands of people to the city each year.
The Mardi Gras season always starts on January 6th and ends on Shrove Tuesday, which this year falls on February 16th. The season is usually marked by extravagant balls and parades where disguised riders throw trinkets at crowds of crowded people along the parade routes. .
The coronavirus has put an end to these great events. But that hasn’t stopped New Orleans ’celebrities, famous and creative, from presenting socially distant ways of celebrating.
The Krewe of Jeanne d’Arc is a club that annually pays homage to the fallen French hero with a parade through the French Quarter at the official start of the carnival season. This year, the krewe hosts a “Tableaux de Jeanne d’Arc”, where spectators will drive through several “tableaux”, a French term for “living paintings”, which will include festive stations disguised as knights, sharpening swords. and partying in a large fireplace with a roasting pork in the background.
“Life as always has disappeared, so we had to look for different ways to do it this year,” said Antoinette de Alteriis, one of the club’s captains.
The Phunny Phorty Phellows, a group that usually meets on January 6 to mark the start of the season with a party disguised as a tram, is also altering their plans. Crowds usually gather at the facilities where the tram begins its journey to see the group, but this year people are asked to disperse along the tram route and see from there.
But people can still eat cake, that is, the king cake. The sweet cakes, decorated with the official carnival colors of purple, green and gold, can only be eaten from 6 January.
Dozens of parades, balls and other events have also been canceled in Mobile, Alabama. The Gulf of Mexico City has made a name for itself as the cradle of Mardi Gras since the celebrations began there a few years earlier than in New Orleans.
Typically, the Alabama coast begins its observations later in January than New Orleans, meaning the current increase in coronavirus could decrease when events begin. But several organizations began announcing cancellations last month to protect the health of members and partygoers.
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Associated Press journalist Stacey Plaisance contributed to this report.