New Orleans Carnival Balls: The Secret Side of Mardi Gras, 1870-1920

by Jennifer Atkins

Mardi Gras festivities don’t end after the parades roll through the streets; rather, a large part of the celebration continues unseen by the general public. Retreating to theaters, convention centers, and banquet halls, krewes spend the post-parade evening at lavish balls, where members cultivate a sense of fraternity and reinforce the organization’s shared values through pageantry and dance. In New Orleans Carnival Balls, Jennifer Atkins draws back the curtain on the origin of these exclusive soirees, bringing to light unique traditions unseen by outsiders.

The oldest Carnival organizations―the Mistick Krewe of Comus, Twelfth Night Revelers, Krewe of Proteus, Knights of Momus, and Rex―emerged in the mid-nineteenth century. These old-line krewes ruled Mardi Gras from the Civil War until World War I, and the traditions of their private balls reflected a need for group solidarity amidst a world in flux. For these organizations, Carnival balls became magical realms where krewesmen reinforced their elite identity through sculpted tableaux vivants performances, mock coronations, and romantic ballroom dancing. This world was full of krewesmen became gods, kings, and knights, while their daughters became queens and maids. As the old-line krewes cultivated a sense of brotherhood, they used costume and movement to reaffirm their group identity, and the crux of these performances relied on a specific mode of expression―dancing.

Using the concept of dance as a lens for examining Carnival balls, Atkins delves deeper into the historical context and distinctive rituals of Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Beyond presenting readers with a new means of thinking about Carnival traditions, Atkins’s work situates dance as a vital piece of historical inquiry and a mode of study that sheds new light on the hidden practices of some of the best-known krewes in the Big Easy.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

256 pages, Hardcover

Published September 13, 2017

Reviews

[Redsteve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scholarly but readable. In-depth focus on the "old line" krewes (Comus, Momus, Proteus, Twelfth Night Revelers, and Rex) during the "Golden Age of Mardi Gras" (1870-1920) with some occasional digressions on contemporary but either less-long lived or less high-status krewes. While also addressing their parades, the primary focus of the author is the actual balls: the elaborate tableaus, royal courts, processionals, memberships, and elaborate etiquette. All combined to bind the optimates of New Orleans and their families together. These rituals were also intended to demonstrate the differences in class, race, and gender - and (especially in the early decades) to transform the shameful defeat of the Civil War (and later federal occupation) into the cult of the "lost cause." The second half of the book deals more with the specifics of evolving tastes in dance and the krewes' attempts to keep their dance floor "aristocratic" and genteel. 3.5 stars. FYI - this is NOT a book on Mardi Gras in general, but a very specific analysis of the balls thrown by a small number of carnival krewes in a limited period.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is really only 3.5 (which is the current Goodreads average but I am giving an extra.5 star for Jennifer Atkins tackling this subject matter.

The book is well researched and sourced (although she relies too heavily on a select few previous secondary sources such as Karen Leathem's doctoral thesis titled A Carnival According to their Own Desires) but Atkins prose is subpar and extremely repetitive. Many of the conclusions Atkins comes to as reasons behind the Mardi Gras customs and rituals during this time period are ridiculous.

I applaud the research and some amusing stories about 19th and 20th century Mardi Gras, but it is clear that Ms. Atkins has little firsthand old-line Carnival experience.

New Orleans Mardi Gras has always been at its core about fun, decadence and revelry. Atkins book has zero of these three attributes in describing the Golden Age of Carnival. New Orleans Mardi Gras is anything but an academic exercise and deserves to be covered in a manner that captures the spirit of the season.

[Abbey · Rating 3 out of 5]

2017: A book set during a holiday that is not Christmas

The cover of this book captured my imagination at BookPeople in Austin, and it was one of my Christmas gift card purchases earlier this year.

This book is definitely a scholarly work of the absolute specifics of Mardi Gras balls during this 50 year period. Atkins zeroes in on dance traditions (this book is also listed as "dance studies") and the society requirements of each Krewe. I had never thought of it, but it makes absolute sense that the balls served as the "coming out parties" of the New Orleans society young women. Her extensive appendices are interesting to track the same names of the kings and queens, as well as the different themes of each Krewe each year.

I learned some interesting things in this book, but it's not what I was wanting it to be. But, to be fair, I didn't know what I wanted this book to be (a more detailed history of the aesthetics and feel and mood of the carnival season in that time period) until I was well into the book. So, while I didn't love this book, it was interesting and has piqued my interest in learning more about the history of Mardi Gras in New Orleans.