New Carnival exhibit at the Louisiana Research Collection

"Throw thee something, mister! Shakespeare on Parade at LaRC"

Shakespeare-inspired Mardi Gras ball invitations, call out and admittance cards, dance cards and parade bulletins dating from 1870 to 1932 will be on view through March 30 at the Louisiana Research Collection in Jones Hall, Room 200. The exhibition is free and open to the public Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Saturday mornings from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. “Welcome Merry Shrovetide: Shakespeare on Parade,” will include Shakespearian designs from Comus, Consus, Disciples of Thespis, Elves of Oberon, Falstaffians, Phunny Phorty Phellows, and Twelth Night Revellers . Shakespeare's works and characters, from A Mid-Summer’s Night’s Dream to Falstaff to The Merry Wives of Windsor and more, have long-inspired Carnival krewes with their themes of misrule and merriment, pleasure and masquerading. The exhibit will also feature Rex ducal medals and souvenir pins of Amphictyons, Argonauts, Athenians, Atlanteans, Comus, and Consus. The Louisiana Research Collection (LaRC) preserves the largest Carnival collection in the world and recently completed a two-year project to place more than 5,600 original float and costume designs from the “Golden Age of Carnival” online. Support for the Carnival collection comes in part from a bequest by Charles L. “Pie” Dufour.

Special thanks to "Pie" Dufour intern, Christine Horn, who created this exhibit.

(Image: Detail of Bottom from a Midsummer Night’s Dream, Phunny Phorty Phellows 1883 invitation. Images from the Louisiana Research Collection, Howard-Tilton Memorial Library, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana. Images may not be reproduced without permission.)

Posted by Eira Tansey.

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