Mamma Mia! @ The Saenger Theatre
Review by Eileen Daley My finite life can be divided into two categories: days when I am the most rapt and credulous audience member to ever enjoy a musical, and days where I’d rather be anywhere else. This varies by show, of course, but the attitude I bring into the theater can color my entire experience. And what with the news being what it is, my life doing what it does, and The Big Game taking over town this past weekend, I wasn’t sure I was in the aisle-dancing mood. Luckily, the touring production of MAMMA MIA! at the Saenger theater was ready to show me how wrong I was. I don't know about you, but to me, it feels like MAMMA MIA! (and its giant Times Square billboard) has been around my whole life - at least as long as CATS and Les Mis have played on Broadway. But it actually had its New York premiere in October of 2001. Certainly those crowds would have found it even harder to suspend their disbelief and let a cheery ABBA dance party sweep them off their feet. Not only that, but its jukebox musical concept—while not completely novel—was unproven with modern audiences before MAMMA MIA! basically resurrected the genre. Jersey Boys, Rock of Ages and Jagged Little Pill would soon follow, but none achieved the success of the original, which is still the ninth-longest running Broadway show in history. And as true in 2025 as it was in 2001, the crowd loved it. Back then, after one of the performances in that first month, a certain small-time actress by the name of Meryl Streep wrote a note to the cast and director Phyllida Lloyd “to basically say: ‘Thank You For The Music and for the injection of joy that was so needful at that moment.’” I couldn’t put it better myself. The outrageous costumes, the expressionist vaporwave set design, and the slightly muppet-y deliveries all come together to form a lovely sort of dream scored by the world’s foremost Swedish pop quartet. Standouts included Madison Deadman as Sophie, and Stephanie Genito as Tanya. Seven years after that note, Phyllida Lloyd took a chance (took a chance, took a took a chance chance) on a complete unknown and cast Ms. Streep as the lead in the motion picture adaptation of her celebrated musical. Unfortunately, that’s not standard practice in showing appreciation for glowing reviews anymore. Shame! If you change your mind…you know where to find me. Mamma Mia! plays at The Saenger Theatre through Feb 16th - click here for showtimes and ticketing information Here's a round-up of some Mardi Gras season happenings at some of our favourite local restaurants:
Palm&Pine During Krewe of Barkus on Sunday, February 23rd, guests are encouraged to bring their four-legged friends to brunch and savor Palm&Pine’s housemade treats. Patrons can indulge in The P&P Salad, Blue Crab Rangoons and Waygu Steak and Eggs. On Lundi Gras, Monday, March 3, Palm&Pine will host its annual Supa Dupa Pine: An Iconic Lundi Gras Brunch from 10:30 AM - 3PM, priced at $25 per person. The day will feature Supa Fly entertainment presented by Bella Blue. Reservations can be made on Resy. Leading up to Lundi Gras, Palm&Pine is bringing back its celebrated Foie Gras King Cake after a two-year hiatus. The famous cake, featured in the Big Book of King Cake, has had a cult following since the restaurant’s pop-up days. It will be available for purchase by the slice only. The Bower Celebrate the carnival season with three Mardi Gras-inspired cocktails from The Bower. Sip on Carnival Negroni with housemade glittered Campari, gin, and vermouth; St. Charles Sour with house-infused peach bourbon, lemon, aquafaba, and red wine float; and for a frozen treat, the Mobile Mardi Gras with spiced rum and chocolate vegan soft serve. For more information, visit https://www.thebowernola.com/. Birdy’s Celebrate the carnival season with a special Mardi Gras-themed cocktail from Birdy's. The tasty Mardi Gras Martini is the perfect cocktail to bring out the Mardi Gras spirit, and you can pair it with their King Cake Cinnamon Roll. These celebratory sips/bites are the perfect way to toast the season! For more information, visit https://birdysnola.com/. Tujague’s Join Tujague’s for the 2025 Krewe du Vieux Parade Viewing Party on Saturday, February 15th. Enjoy an open-call brand bar, along with a selection of beer and wine, and indulge in a delightful buffet throughout the evening. Guests will have access to our exclusive private balcony, indoor seating, and private bathrooms for a comfortable and memorable experience. Tickets are $160 per person, inclusive of tax and gratuity. For more information and to purchase tickets visit here. Compere Lapin Celebrate Mardi Gras with a special a la carte Friday Lunch at Compère Lapin on February 28th, from 10:30AM to 2PM. Compere Lapin will feature a Mardi Gras menu including starters like buttermilk biscuits with honey and bacon butter, crispy tater tots with crème fraiche and caviar, and broiled shrimp with Calabrian chili butter and cilantro. For the main course, guests can enjoy curried goat with sweet potato gnocchi, fried chicken with biscuits and hot honey, or classic shrimp and grits with creole sauce, among other delicious options. Don't miss out on the decadent desserts, including bread pudding with local berries and Chantilly, mango crème brulee with coconut and berries, and a selection of locally-made ice cream and sorbet. For reservations and more information, visit http://comperelapin.com/reservations BABs This Carnival Season, BABs will be showcasing specialty Mardi Gras inspired cocktails, created by savvy bar guru Rick Powanda: Leading up to Fat Tuesday, the bar will be showcasing a Fat Washing Series:
Beggars Banquet Beggars Banquet will be hosting the Beggars Brunch with a Mardi Gras menu available for two weekends, February 22-23 and March 1-2 from 10:30AM - 3PM. Highlights of the brunch menu will include Pear Toast and Crispy Firecracker Calamari. Entrees will include the Jam n Ham Beignet and Stuffed French Toast. In addition, from now through Fat Tuesday the restaurant will offer Mardi Gras Muses, a specialty cocktail menu. Also available for just $50 will be Gable Boxes, with a choice of quarts of espresso martinis, bloody marys, or spicy boy margaritas (about five drinks to-go) with ice, and cups for the parades. For reservations and more information, please visit https://www.beggarsbanquetneworleans.com/. Virgin Hotels New Orleans
A Taste of Ireland—The Irish Music & Dance Sensation, comes to the Jefferson Performing Arts Center on Friday, February 28. The hit show features an international cast of Irish dance champions, many known for starring roles in Lord of the Dance and Riverdance. The production, which combines Irish charm with sensational talents, features high-octane dances set to reimagined classics such as “Danny Boy,” accompanied by technical wizardry and live music.
Click here for show information and ticketing TRUE WEST @ WESTWEGO PERFORMING ARTS CENTER Review by Todd Perley Sam Shepard’s play explores the rocky relationship between two estranged brothers, Austin, the educated screenwriter, and Lee, the thieving drifter counterpart, as they camp out at their mother’s house while she’s on an Alaskan holiday. As Austin tries to write his play, he makes an effort to be welcoming to his brother, but his patience runs dry as Lee’s truculence and interruptions quickly erode his attempt at brotherly love. When Lee muscles in on a meeting with Austin’s producer Saul and usurps his play, Austin’s bonhomie is over, and the characters’ personalities flip-flop as Lee tries to write and Austin raids neighborhood homes for toasters, trying to prove he can be a bad boy too. 'True West' opened in 1980 with Tommy Lee Jones and Peter Boyle as the sparring brothers, and in 2000 moved to Broadway with Philip Seymour Hoffman and John C. Reilly, where it was nominated for a Tony for best play. As Shepard said, “I wanted to write a play about double nature, one that wouldn’t be symbolic or metaphorical or any of that stuff. I just wanted to give a taste of what it feels like to be two-sided.” Goal achieved. Set in mom’s kitchen, which steadily becomes more and more trashed as the relationship grows tenser, Topher Johnson’s Austin and Philip Yiannopoulos’s Lee keep the sparks flying in a relentless crescendo. The booze starts flowing, façades are dropped, and the house (and theater) fill with the smell of fresh toast from Austin’s stolen toasters. Smelling toast is often a precursor to a stroke, I recalled, and the animosity between the brothers may be headed in that direction as well. Toast as metaphor? Shepard says no, but what does he know? Mom (Deb Margolin) makes a darkly comedic appearance towards the end as the men are reaching their limit, suggesting gently that perhaps they shouldn’t fight, then leaves for a motel because, “I don’t recognize my house anymore.” Her behavior tells us this is an old story between the siblings. The duality within each brother is relatable, as we all have different masks we wear. 'True West' seems a more masculine-oriented character study akin to Edward Albee. It could be subtitled “Who’s Pretty Damn Exasperated with Virginia Woolf?” 'True West' plays at Westwego Performing Arts through 16 February Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans is unveiling an extraordinary collaboration with renowned floral designer Jeff Leatham from Thursday, February 6th, in time for Super Bowl LIX guests. Fuchsias, rich purples and pink florals will be cascading through the lobby, Chandelier Bar and past Miss River, with sunny yellows and verdant greens flowing through the fifth floor past the Spa and Chemin a la Mer. As the city steps into its most vibrant season, the floral experience will serve as a very seasonal celebration. Hotel website
The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) will open New African Masquerades: Artistic Innovations and Collaborations, a major exhibition presenting the work of four contemporary artists working in cities across West Africa: Chief Ekpenyong Bassey Nsa, Sheku “Goldenfinger” Fofanah, David Sanou, and Hervé Youmbi.
The first presentation of its kind, New African Masquerades offers a rare look into contemporary West African masquerade by contextualizing the works of individual artists within a range of social, economic, and religious practices and examining their networks of viewership and exchange. Made from materials including wood, cloth and fabrics, sequins, feathers, gourds, raffia, and cowry shells, the ensembles on view represent a wide variety of masquerade practices and societies. New African Masquerades is on view April 4–August 10, 2025, in NOMA’s first-floor Ella West Freeman Galleries. We've been excited ever since news broke last year that Melissa Araujo, two-time James Beard: Best Chef South semifinalist (2024 and 2025), would open a second location of her celebrated Honduran restaurant, Alma Cafe. Known for its bold and soulful take on Latin American cuisine (READ OUR REVIEW HERE), Alma Cafe’s second location is now open to the public at 301 North Carrollton Avenue in Mid-City. The new outpost marks an exciting addition to one of the city’s most vibrant neighborhoods (READ OUR PREVIEW FOR MENU AND OPENING INFORMATION).
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