by The Athens community celebrated Mardi Gras, which is French for “Fat Tuesday,” for the sixth annual Historic Athens Mardi Gras Masquerade on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
This year, the event was held at Terrapin Beer Co. and the festivities included live music from Blair Crimmins and The Hookers, a costume contest, New Orleans cuisine and the crowning of the Mardi Gras court. This year’s theme focused on celebrating the art, history and culture in Athens with an auction on parasols that local artists designed.
The event also offered a ticket package that enabled guests to shuttle between Terrapin Beer Co. and the other venue, Nighthawks Lounge, for their Mardi Gras-themed cocktail experience. The main events, like the parasol auction and crowning of the Mardi Gras court, happened at Terrapin Beer Co.
Gabe (right) and Jennie (left) Comstock smile at each other during the Historic Athens Mardi Gras Masquerade at Terrapin Beer Co. in Athens, Georgia, on Tuesday, Feb 13, 2024. The event turned the Terrapin Beer Co. into a colorful celebration of the arts and life, complete with swing dancing, parasol auctions, a couples costume contest and the crowning of the Mardi Gras court. (Photo/Felix Scheyer; @felixscheyer)
The masquerade began at 5:30 p.m. with food and swing dance lessons. Local art non-profits tabled on the patio outside the brewery, and Emma Brisendine represented Love Craft Athens, a nonprofit that serves adults with developmental disabilities through programming and workforce development. Brisendine is the communications specialist for Love Craft Athens and a University of Georgia alumna.
“We’re just such a small nonprofit so tabling and being able to tell people by word of mouth, not just on [social media] what we’re about, I think that’s so impactful,” Brisendine said.
Blair Crimmins & The Hookers began performing at 7:00 p.m. and trombone player, Daniel Wytanis, said this is the band’s third year performing at this event and that he loves the energy of performing at the Mardi Gras Masquerade.
“As a trombone player, it’s a special time of year where we get to celebrate New Orleans culture outside of New Orleans,” Wytanis said.
Before the parasol auction began at 8:20 p.m., author and playwright, Hattie Whitehead, went on stage to tell guests about “Linnentown – The Musical,” coming to the Classic Center in April. The musical is based on her novel “Giving Voice to Linnentown,” which illustrates her perspective of living in that community before the University System of the Georgia Board of Regents expanded onto the property, leaving many unhoused.
Historic Athens Director Tommy Valentine reiterated the importance of preserving Athens’s history and why this organization holds fundraiser events like the Mardi Gras Masquerade.
“This is a great big party where a lot of different people with a lot of different backgrounds feel comfortable coming together,” Valentine said. “When we talk about preservation in Athens, when we talk about history in Athens, we’re not talking about one story, one place. We’re talking about all the places, we’re talking about all the people.”
Attendees of the Masquerade dance to the musical stylings of Blair Crimmins and the Hookers Blair Crimmins during the Historic Athens Mardi Gras Masquerade at Terrapin Beer Co. in Athens, Georgia, on Tuesday, Feb 13, 2024. The event turned the Terrapin Beer Co. into a colorful celebration of the arts and life, complete with swing dancing, parasol auctions, a couples costume contest and the crowning of the Mardi Gras court. (Photo/Felix Scheyer; @felixscheyer)
Valentine then went on to lead the auction, describing materials and designs various local artists created on their parasols.
The main parasol was created by Jamie Cocklin, a local artist known for his ink and watercolor silk paintings. His parasol featured illustrations of historic buildings around Athens and sold for $600 to Historic Athens’ Trustee, Alan Clevland, who bought two other parasols that night.
As a trustee, Cleveland works to promote events and recruit people to be a part of Historic Athens. Cleveland said the amount of camaraderie that he enjoys most about being a part of the organization.
“It’s the characters who live here, it’s the culture, preserving that is important if you live here,” Cleveland said. “[Athens] is a unique area, you know, a unique place in the world. Many people think this is the best place to live.”
The masquerade ended with Andrea and Ozzie Mignott winning the couples costume contest. Each guest at the event was given two tokens to vote on the Mardi Gras court and it was announced at the end of the night that Michael Lachowski was crowned king, with Narke Norton named duke, and Didi Dunphy was crowned queen, Lynn Battlegreen was named duchess.
Blair Crimmins & The Hookers performed again at 9:00 p.m. with a drag performance by The Kourtesans to end the night.
