New Orleans music and fashion to be brought to Athens.
Students who were not able to indulge in Mardi Gras celebrations Tuesday, will have another opportunity to dress in gold and purple masks, feathers and Mardi Gras beads on Saturday.
The more than 1,800 square-foot stage of Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium will be turned into a New Orleans-themed “Wild Honeybees Mardi Gras Dance Party” at 8 p.m., which is free for students.
Along with the dancing and fashion, feisty southern style snacks and fancy drinks will be served.
Andrew Holzaepfel, senior associate director for the Campus Involvement Center, said he is looking forward to bringing this event back after “a few year hiatus.”
“We look forward to MemAud’s stage being full of music and dancing,” Holzaepfel said in an email.
Other venues that frequently put on Mardi Gras events in Athens include Jackie O’s Pub and Brewery and Casa Nueva.
Stephanie Katterhenrich, worker, owner and board treasurer at Casa Nueva, said music genres played at Mardi Gras events can vary.
“They play a lot of Louisiana-based or southern music,” Katterhenrich said. “Also, there is a lot of southern hip-hop rap that has been played.”
The event will feature Athens band, the Wild Honeybees, a dance band that is known for using horns and instruments to create a New Orleans jazz and R&B sound. This will be the third year the band has performed Mardi Gras events Uptown, with Saturday being its first Ohio University performance.
Mark Burhans, founder and director of the Wild Honeybees, said Mardi Gras sets itself apart from other musical events his band has performed at.
“What I like about New Orleans music is that it’s not just for certain people,” Burhans, also a trombone player, said. “You get young people and old folks out there dancing and having a good time.”
Tom Hirbe, Cantina coordinator at Casa Nueva, said it will be helpful for Casa to pay attention to MemAud for ideas on conducting events along the Mardi Gras theme.
“It helps us a lot to keep in touch with what the university is doing,” Hirbe said. “It’s nice to play off somebody else’s event without competing.”
Katterhenrich discussed the importance of southern music being played at Mardi Gras.
“With Mardi Gras being located in the south, that’s generally what people associate with that particular event,” Katterhenrich said. “That is the focus that we have put on it so that it will have a southern feel to it.”
Hilarie Burhans, wife of Mark Burhans, hopes people who come to MemAud this weekend will use Mardi Gras to step outside of familiarity.
{{tncms-asset app="editorial" id="7ec2b644-cfc1-11e5-b3e4-0bd23fdaf8ec"}}
“It’s stepping out of Athens and into New Orleans,” Hilarie said. “It’s like taking a trip.”
Mark Burhans said there will be a connection between the band and audience members.
“We’re a dance band 100 percent, we have to get people up and moving,” Mark said. “If people respond to it, then that gets us going, and it’s a gratifying thing.”
@jcooke1996
