Celebrate Mardis Gras with the music of New Orleans

Let the good times roll at the Mardis Gras Mambo this Saturday, Feb. 26 at the Vilar Performing Arts Center.

The New Orleans-inspired evening features The Dirty Dozen Brass Band and Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas in a brass band showdown. Together, it’s a non-stop dance fest – a master class in blues, cajun, New Orleans soul, zydeco, and R&B from two of Louisiana’s best.

The evening’s performance will be a celebration of Mardi Gras, with New Orleans featured cocktails, beads and, of course, dance and music.

Celebrating over 40 years since their founding in 1977, the New Orleans-based Dirty Dozen Brass Band has taken the traditional foundation of brass band music and incorporated it into a blend of genres, including bebop, jazz, funk and R&B/soul. Their unique sound, described by the band as a “musical gumbo,” has allowed the Dirty Dozen to tour across five continents and more than 30 countries, record 12 studio albums and collaborate with a range of artists from Modest Mouse to Widespread Panic to Norah Jones.

Forty-plus years later, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band is a world-famous music machine whose name is synonymous with genre-bending romps and high-octane performances.

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“The Dirty Dozen Brass Band continues to be a national treasure; steeped in both the past and the present, impossible to categorize and mighty funky,” writes The New York Times.

Nathan Williams delivers a direct connection to Zydeco’s storied pioneers such as Clifton Chenier and Boozoo Chavis. Nathan formed the Cha Chas back in 1985, and since has brought their unique take on regional South Louisiana music to all corners of the globe. From the Lincoln Center in New York to The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, their music has crossed many barriers. Keepers of the Zydeco Flame, they are committed to keeping their Creole Heritage alive.

“Nathan Williams never disappoints. On record and in person, you can always depend on Williams’ rockin’ Zydeco to lift your spirits and move your feet,” says No Depression Americana and Roots Music.

Among the specialty cocktails available at the VPAC performance will be a Twisted Vieux Carre drink, a New Orleans cocktail dating back to the 1930s – featuring local Colorado whiskey.

Tickets are $48 and available online at VilarPAC.org/mardi-gras-mambo.

For more information, visit VilarPAC.org.