LOUISIANA CREOLE CULTURAL NEWSFLASH Louisianas Country Mardi Gras Traditions, Then and Now by John laFleur II, Copyright 2015 All Rights Reserved. Feed Me Something, Madame! Is probably more representative of Louisianas Country Creole Mardi Gras tradition despite the introduction of the 19th century New Orleans French-influenced tradition of bead throwing and women exposing their breasts. Among the traditions of our earliest colonial traditions of course, remain the equestrian or horseback courrir de Mardi Gras which is both a historical tradition and great recreation as it is amusing to watch. The capitain leads his community in a countryside galavant for its expected rewards of chicken, rice or sausage; the awards presented to them for excellent song and dance, in a very Old World fashion. As a boy growing up in Ville Platte, Louisiana, I was at once surprised as I was intrigued by the two Mardi Gras traditions which existed in the same town. Of course, there was the parade sur la Grand Rue which was followed by a street dance or contredanse on Saturday night and so beloved by my French Creole grandma Rhea Huguet-LaFleur of Ville Platte. She was of Parisian French Huguet and Louisiana-Alabama Creole Fontenot and Canadian Soileau familial origins. And, she could cook and dance and drink all at the same time! She was intelligent, hard working, beautiful and passionate. Due to her herculanean strength, wisdom and indefatigable spirit, her once wealthy plantation Creole-Metis LaFleur family heirs would not starve and would again rise to financial comfort. She literally manned the familys new American business in Ville Platte, Louisiana which was to become their new home. The Fish Dock at 111 La Salle Street no longer exists, but the memory of my grandmother still does among the many who entered there on Good Fridays and on weekends before Mardi Gras. Chèvrettes étouffées to seafood gumbo to court bouillon de poisson and poireaux a lail ( leeks w/ garlic), were among the exquisite meal preparations which signaled special events such as Lent or Creme and of course, Mardi Gras! Was satire ever used in this country courtier and in the masquerade in general? Whether locall folks know it or not, it was and still is, at least, implicitly. Examples of the most ancient moquerie of social disorder is seen in the traditional cross dressing of men and women, costuming as religious, priests & nuns and even the Pope! Today, politicians are neither sacrosanct anymore than are religious and Hollywood royalty! In Ville Platte, I mentioned the existence of two Mardi Gras traditions; the public American and tourist-oriented Mardi Gras which was a reflection of the New Orleans Carnival tradition, but there was another, the older Louisiana Creole Mardi Geas masquerade, march and courrir which tied several older historical veins of Mardi Gras to the beginnings of not only La Louisiane of Bienvilles day, but also traditions still seen across the Caribbean, West Africa, France and the Indian Ocean French Creole world. Once, I shared this story with my cousin-photographer artist Norris Fontenot. He had never heard or known of this Mardi Gras tradition before, until about 5 years ago. At that time, an older cousin who was once a child resident of Ville Platte whore a little book, a sort of memoir. In this book, he mentions the poverty and the humble cottage his family inhabited off of Lincoln road which during my early youth was still an unpaved muddy cow path which was essentially the border of Ville Plattes northern city limits. The French Creole Dardeau family home still sits like an old throne next to the huge oak tree which also faced the backside of the Dupuis home. Me Dupuis rembered this other, older French Creole Mardi Gras which was one of the traditions our Creoles de couleur relatives so held on to, as they did their/our ancestors treasured customs, usually the only legacys they were allowed to keep after Americanization reduced them to African Americans or negres. It is this remarkable Mardi Gras tradition that I will now share with all of you, soon. :)
Posted on: Sun, 18 Jan 2015 20:57:47 +0000
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