We’ve got your weekend: It’s more than music out there this weekend!

Photo by: Timothy Duffy (American, born 1963) of Little Freddie King, New Orleans, LA, 2014, Tintype, 4.5 x 6.5 in., © Timothy Duffy 2019

Wednesday, April 24/Octavia Books (513 Octavia Street): We love our poets in New Orleans, and one of our favorite poets, Elizabeth Gross, will be reading at Octavia books for her book launch of this body/that lightning show. The reading will begin at 6:00 PM, but even when the reading is over, we are sure her masterful way with words will remain with you for time to come. 

Wednesday, April 24/Lafayette Square: Just in case you want to get a jump start of heat, sun, and music, you can head out to Lafayette Square on Wednesday for the YLC Wednesdays at the Square concert series. This Wednesday Marc Broussard with The Iceman Special will be playing. The headliner performs from 6:30 – 8:00 PM. Opening act from 5:00 – 6:00 PM. This event is free and open to the public. Proceeds from food and drink sales benefit YLC’s community service projects, which are designed to improve the quality of life in New Orleans and to foster leadership skills in young professionals.

Wednesday, April 24/The Contemporary Arts Center (900 Camp Street): You can switch between music and are in the CBD on Wednesday because The Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans in association with the University of New Orleans School of the Arts, is presenting New York-based Argento New Music Project on Wednesday, April 24, 7:30 PM in a performance of Gérard Grisey’sVortex Temporum. Tickets are $25 for the general public, $20 for CAC members and are available at cacno.org or at the CAC Box Office. Admission is complimentary for UNO students with valid student ID. Concert proceeds will support the Contemporary Arts Center’s mission to present, produce, and promote contemporary art. This concert is part of the University of New Orleans School of the Arts’ Musical Excursion series, an annual award-winning series that brings acclaimed classical and world musical artists to UNO’s Lakefront campus.

Thursday, April 25/New Orleans Museum of Art (1 Collins Diboll Circle): Sometimes you just want to kick it old school, and The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) new exhibit of Timothy Duffy: Blue Muse, on view April 25, 2019 through July 28, 2019 is kicking it way old school We are talking tintypes, people. Using a photography process invented in the United States in the nineteenth-century, Timothy Duffy creates masterful one-of-a-kind tintype portraits of American musicians, preserving the faces of American roots music for future generations. The museum is open to the public ($15 for general entry), and remember it is free for Louisiana residents on Wednesdays!

Friday April 26-Saturday April 27/Mardi Gras World (1380 Port of New Orleans): You looking for more music outside the Jazz Fest Fairgrounds? Joe Russo’s Almost Dead  announced a series of 2019 tour dates, including New Orleans on Friday, April 26 and Saturday, April 27, 2019 during the first weekend of Jazz Fest. The two-night run will be held at Mardi Gras World Ballroom after a sold out two-night run in 2018 and three previously sold out runs from 2015 – 2017 at the historic Joy Theater. In other words, you might want to get your tickets now. As part of the two-night run, there will be General Admission, VIP admission, as well as both General Admission and VIP combo tickets available for purchase that will allow guests entrance into both shows.

Saturday, April 27/Old Mandeville (Girod Street): The Old Mandeville Business Association (OMBA) will welcome the spring season to Old Mandeville on Saturday, April 27 (Rain Date: April 28) at the Girod Street Stroll. This annual event takes place from 5:00 to 9:00 PM on Girod Street from the Mandeville Trailhead to the Lakefront. There will be light tasting plates by top local chefs and specialty mint juleps served by more than 30 participating businesses. OMBA will also raffle off a live painting of the event, created by New Orleans-based professional artist and performer Andrew Wilkie. The event will also feature a number of original art vendors, and live musical entertainment by Neo Brass Band. To find out more about the event as well as purchase tickets, you can click here. 

Thursday, April 24-Sunday, April 28/Jazz Fest (Fairgrounds): In case you forget, there is a giant music festival happening this weekend and next weekend! For a full line-up of the bands, you can use this link.