Easter in New Orleans: Bunnies, Bars and Beads

The gay scene in New Orleans has its fair share of holidays it celebrates with glittering excess: Halloween, Southern Decadence and Mardi Gras. But Easter weekend has crept up in the ranks and now draws huge crowds of both locals and visitors alike. Beginning on Friday, there are many fun-filled events themed for the holiday that leads all the way up to the largest Gay Easter Parade in the United States.

Good Friday kicked off the festivities with Bunnies in the Big Easy. Now in its fifth year, this soiree was held at the Bourbon Vieux, a luxurious and elegant venue located at 501 Bourbon Street. It touts the largest balcony on the famed thoroughfare among other attributes like award-winning cuisine, a hospitable staff and New Orleans décor. Bunnies In the Big Easy is the last of five fundraisers during the Lenten season to raise funds for the Gay Easter Parade and its charity Food For Friends, a division of the NO/AIDS Task Force.

This year guests were greeted at the door by numerous Bunny Boys each with his own unique theme like the Fetish Bunny and the Prince Charming Bunny. The event is styled like an evening at the Playboy Mansion except instead of the Playboy Bunny Girls, we have hot Bunny Boys. The night also included an open bar, an incredible drag show and a live auction that raised several thousand dollars for the cause. Entertaining this evening was Barbara Ella, Elizabeth Bouvier, Opal Masters and Sofanda Peters.

The event was hosted by Gay Easter Parade Board Members Rona Connors and Tony Leggio (yours truly) along with Opal Masters. The Grand Marshals for the parade Stuart Nettles and Todd Blauvelt were also on hand. It was a fun-filled evening of festive Easter cheer, as guests threw beads from the balcony to the revelers below, dined on delectable culinary treats and had fabulous libations. Jello shots and daiquiris were also provided to the attendees to add to the merriment. Culminating this unique party was an over-the-top Easter Egg Hunt that brought lots of prizes to all those who found the lucky eggs.

Afterwards, Oz New Orleans, one of the largest gay bars in the city, hosted The White Party. The bar is draped entirely in white as well as all the bartenders making patrons feel like they are floating in the clouds to the music of some amazing DJ’s. The hostess of the evening was the witty and talented Persana Shoulders who kept things moving throughout the evening.

The following day was the Marigny Bunny Hop which started at 2 p.m. The weather was gorgeous as participants strolled this historic neighborhood on this enjoyable bar crawl. People are urged to wear their most creative handmade bonnets with each of the eight locations awarding a different trophy. Some of the awards are Sissiest, Butchest, Best Group, Tallest and Widest Bonnets. Having grown in size since its humble beginnings eleven years ago, this event is now one of the premier happenings over the Easter Weekend. Each year, the parade is led by a different Bunny Marshal, with this year being a social group called the Betties. The Betties have been a part of this second line for so long (and won in this category so many times also), they even names one of the wards after them called the Betties Best Group Award. The places on the route were Mags 940, The Phoenix, Kajun’s Pub, The Friendly Bar, Who Dat Café, Cutter’s, Mimi’s and Big Daddy’s.

I believe Easter Sunday in New Orleans is a perfect melting of the traditional with the revelry. Going to early morning mass at St. Louis Cathedral in all its grandeur was followed by my annual Easter Sunday pre-parade brunch. Friends from all over the United States (from New York to Texas) stopped by along with many locals as we dined on traditional brunch fare along with unlimited champagne, mimosas and bloody mary’s. I even had a bunny boy or two left over from the previous night bartend the event. After, we packed up all our throws and headed down to the parade start which is located on Rampart Street directly across from Armstrong Park. There was a pre and post parade party held at Grand Pre’s on that street.

The parade itself consisted of carriages of all sizes from four passenger to eighteen, many cars and marching bands. I had carriage that looked like a trolley car which was large and spacious for my group, our throws and the bartender (yes we brought him along). We had a memorable time tossing beads and trinkets to the people who lined the streets. So many friends came out to see us; it was fantastic to see the local following. Specialty throws such as seed packets and faux Faberge Eggs were handed out to record breaking crowds making it one of the most successful of recent. After the Gay Easter Parade, which is one of three that day, the French Quarter was teeming with people continuing the party well into the night. Between the Gay Easter Parade, the Chris Owens Parade and the historic Germaine Wells Parade, Easter Sunday in the French Quarter is a location to observe the holiday.

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Tony Leggio

Tony Leggio is a born and raised New Orleanian. He has over 20 years of event management experience having produced over 5,000 events locally and nationally. Tony has received numerous awards for his outstanding achievements in the hospitality industry. Besides his professional career, Anthony has played an active role in the community.He has served Event Chair of Art Against AIDS for the No/Aids Task Force for the past ten years and was honored as Humanitarian of the Year in 2010 by the organization. He is also a freelance writer who has written for USA Today, as well as several local publications.He also writes a column regularly In Ambush Magazine, plus is part of Gambit’s Big Easy Theatre Committee.Tony is a social butterfly of New Orleans that not only knows how to put on a great event but also knows how to enjoy one.

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