In case you’ve somehow forgotten, let me remind you that Krewe du Vieux is this weekend! In my mind, this officially kicks off the Mardi Gras season and this year, I couldn’t be more ready for the festivities. After watching a parade or two, you may start to wonder: who are these amazing people having so much fun shaking their tail-feathers and marching – or riding, if they’re lucky – for miles? Or, better yet: how can I get involved in something like that?
Enter The Organ Grinders, a dance troupe founded by Chrissy Duggar and open to anyone who is enthusiastic about music, dance, New Orleans and parades! Gender, socioeconomic status, or lack of dance ability will not prevent you from joining. As part of this Mardi Gras season, The Organ Grinders will be involved with The Mystic Krewe of Nyx on February 15, Krewe of O.A.K. on February 17, and Krewe of Orpheus on February 20.
The Organ Grinders at Krewe DeLusion Fundraiser (Photo by Amber Wolf / amberwolf.net)
The inspiration behind the Organ Grinders came from Duggar’s desire to start something similar to a dance troupe she was previously in for nine years, but she also wanted to found a group that would be open for anyone to join. And the name? In her own words, “I was having my own private dance party with all my old Prince albums and ‘Violet the Organ Grinder’ gave me the name.” Recruiting for The Organ Grinders was initially done only through word of mouth and email, but now they’re online presence has expanded to a Web site and a Facebook group page and fan page.
Chrissy Duggar playing cowbell with Dash Rip Rock at a 2011 Organ Grinders fundraiser. (Photo by James Aull)
The troupe wears royal blue and metallic gold costumes. In the beginning the costumes were a bit more mismatched, but Chrissy decided there needed to be a set costume because “even though we had banners, a sound system, and matching choreography, people still thought we were this rogue dance troupe that crashed parades.”
The music featured on the Web site is amazing, and Chrissy told me that the troupe is interested in a lot of different musical styles, including “Bhangra and Bollywood, Arabic pop, Turkish pop, Klezmer, and Reggaeton.” A drum line marches alongside the performers, who wear hip scarves to add a “wicked cool jingle jangle” to their dances. This year the drum line includes some pretty big names: Eric Booth of Endall, Nik Bowie of Fast Niki, Zack Smith, photographer and member of Rotary Downs, and Andrew Wiseman of Zulu Queen and regular on the HBO hit show Treme.In addition to the drum line, Bowie (who is also the production manager at Republic New Orleans) acts as DJ and runs a sound system on the float.
The Organ Grinders at the Camel Toe Fundraiser Fo-Toe Booth. (Photo by Zack Smith / zacksmith.com)
As always, I asked Chrissy what she loves best about New Orleans. “I miss New Orleans when I [leave]. We have friendly people, we’re inundated with amazing live music and kick-ass radio stations, we eat like kings, and it simply feels like you’re living in a different world.”
If you can’t imagine anything better than dancing alongside a rogue-dance-troupe founding Prince fan, contact Chrissy at [email protected] or visit The Organ Grinders’ official Web site.
FREE Weekly Roundup!
Enter your email address for updates on all the best things happening in New Orleans.
Follow Along!