Krewes of King Arthur and Alla Parades

Krewe of King Arthur celebrated their 40th anniversary with colorful floats and costumes commemorating the event. The third of 4 parades Sunday, it seemed like they had every dance krewe and marching band that hadn’t already rolled. Adult parading krewes included NOLA Cherry Bombs, NOLA Nyxettes, Amelia Earhawts, the new Alter Egos, Roux La La in a Rio theme, the fabulously beaded corsets of Dames de Perlage and the Red Hot Dancing Queens of Cincinnati, Ohio making their debut. (PHOTOS)

Krewes of Babylon, Chaos and Muses Parades

Last year, I had very little time to luxuriate in Mardi Gras madness. Django Unchained was ramping up to arrive on Ash Wednesday and I was traveling and working hard to prepare for filming. This year, the movie is out and it’s a hit – #1 globally 3 weeks in a row, 2 Golden Globe wins and 5 Oscar nominations including Best Picture. I can hardly believe I’m a part of it. But between the movie and my new book, Know Small Parts: An Actor’s Guide to Turning Minutes into Moments and Moments int a a Career, I’m again traveling and working hard during Mardi Gras.

Krewe of Bacchus 2012

This year’s Krewe of Bacchus parade was another fun-fest, led this time by Will Ferrell. To read more of the traditions and history of the Krewe and it’s founding family, the Brennens, read last year’s post. The theme was the Louisiana Bicentennial and featured  a near-non-stop procession of amazing marching bands including

Krewe of Bacchus

The Krewe of Bacchus rolls one of the most popular parades of the season. It usually ends the 4 parade Sunday marathon, the giant splash at the end of a fireworks display, but because Endymion was cancelled the day before, we would still have another super-krewe after the 3 hour-ish Bacchus parade. A super-krewe is usually defined as having celebrity marshals and tandem floats as long as skyscrapers lying down.

Krewe of Tucks

The Krewe of Tucks is without a doubt one of the most “colorful” of the Carnival parades in every sense of the word. Known for its toilet-based humor, Tucks was founded in 1969 by Loyola students in the Friar Tuck bar (from which the krewe derives its name) after they had tried in vain to become White flambeaux carriers. Begun as a small night parade of pick-up trucks, the parade is now a large daytime parade and one of the city’s favorites.

Krewe of Pygmalion

Krewe of Pygmalion rolled on the heels of the Knights of Sparta last Saturday night, the topper to a 3 parade day. One of the more affordable krewes, both men and women ride. This year’s theme was “It’s All Greek to Me.” Greek Gods and Goddesses fronted the many floats but weren’t as spectacular as the royalty riding the floats. The peacock-like sequined displays surrounding the King, Queen and court are so cumbersome that the women are held up by an unseen harness hanging from a pole behind them.