Mardi Gras events come to CSC campus
For hundreds of years, Mardi Gras has been celebrated in the South. This week though, Mardi Gras celebrations are coming to Chadron.
The week’s Mardi Gras celebrations included Tuesday‘s RLA event, “Mardi Gras Makeover,” where students decorated Mardi Gras masks. Tonight there will be a Masquerade Ball.
Joseph Persac, Resident Director of Kent Hall, suggesed hosting a Mardi Gras event. He explained that he was told that Kent Hall usually did the winter formal, but he wanted to do something different. Having grown up in Baton Rouge, Persac was familiar with Mardi Gras traditions, so he approached Laure Sinn with his idea and the planning began.
He pointed out that he did not want to do something like a high school prom. Mardi Gras is a more adult celebration. “Not like Vegas,” Persac said, but also not like an “Under the Sea” high school prom.
Persac said that although he had a lot more that he wanted to do besides mask-making and the ball, he had the experience that people often do better when introduced to small amounts of change.
Persac also said he wants to introduce students to the traditions he’s familiar with. He “wants to show [Mardi Gras] is not just a ‘let’s get drunk and wasted’” tradition.
He also explained that he wanted to bring in and introduce food from the South because “food outside the South is terrible.”
The Masquerade ball will also show off Southern traditions through the music. The music played will first be traditional Southern ball music, such as Zytaco and Samba music, before transitioning into hip-hop and pop music.
Persac also expressed his enthusiasm for crowning a King and Queen because the students do not have to be part of a club to be voted for.
“Part of the magic of Mardi Gras is it’s magical for anybody, not just for popular or hyper-active in club students,” Persac said.
Another part of this week’s Mardi Gras celebrations was Tuesday night’s “Mardi Gras Makeover.” That night, over 100 people showed up and crowded around glitter filled tables to work on their masterpieces. Everymask turned out differently, with jewels, feathers, glitter, and beads.
Also at the mask-making event, there was traditional Carnival food and music. Carnival is an event much like Mardi Gras that is celebrated in Trinidad, Tobago, the Caribbean islands and some parts of South America.
The food was a salsa type of dish eaten on bread. People who ate it explained that it was delicious, but spicy and hot.
There was also a slide show that showed Carnival and Mardi Gras traditions, including elaborate costumes and costume contests, parades, and limbo.
The Masquerade Ball will be held tonight from 9 p.m. until Midnight. Students who made masks are encouraged to wear them. Students are also encouraged to dress up, although it is not required.
