Long Absent Cupola Returns to the Presbytere
Raising the Restored Presbytere Cupola
Most people gaze upon the beautiful panorama of Jackson Square and observe the symmetrical layout of the buildings. The Presbytere and the Cabildo flank St. Louis Cathedral like mirror images. Yet, astute observers will notice one very small difference between the two historic State Museum properties. The Cabildo is topped with a classically designed cupola. The Presbytere is not. This was not always the case and will not be the case for much longer.
The Louisiana State Museum is three quarters of the way through a 10 month restoration project that will not only repair the roof of the Mardi Gras themed museum but will top it off with a cupola identical to the one on the Cabildo. Local firm Yeates & Yeates Architects, L.L.C. has designed the cupola and other renovations and Brice Building Company is handling the construction.
This project presents a unique opportunity for necessary repairs as well as a chance to honor the lost architectural heritage of a magnificent and historic building.
Construction on the Presbytere began in 1797 during the Spanish Colonial period, and was completed under the Americans in 1813. The building underwent major renovations in the 1840s after the Baroness Pontalba built the famous Pontalba apartments. Imposing mansard roofs, a third floor and matching cupolas crowned the Presbytere and Cabildo and for the rest of the 19th century the two were like twin sisters overlooking the public square.
Raising the Restored Presbytere Cupola
The original Presbytere cupola lasted more than 60 years. On September 29, 1915 a Category Four hurricane caused major damage to the New Orleans area, uprooting live oaks, flooding parts of the city and destroying or damaging several landmark structures. The exterior structure of the Presbytere’s cupola was demolished. Due to lack of funds at the time, the roof was patched without a cupola and remained bare for almost a century.
Oddly enough, another hurricane would play a role in returning the Presbytere to its previous architectural condition. Wind and water damage from Hurricane Georges on September 28, 1998 compounded by damage from a freak hailstorm, forced state officials to address a major renovation project to repair the roof and exterior of the building. Louisiana State Facility Planning and Control officials, museum director James Sefcik, and the architect for the restoration Ames Yeates made the decision to restore the building to the way it was when the State Museum acquired it in 1911.
Yeates noted that while his office was doing field investigations they discovered that the central heavy timber structural ring that supported the original cupola was still in place in the attic area. The new cupola will be supported from this original heavy timber ring. Also among their discoveries was the patched indention in the roof where the original structure had been extended through the roof to the attic.
This project will be made possible due to $1,974,270.00 in state capital outlay funds and insurance settlements from the recent storm damage. The restoration is scheduled for completion in October 2005. During the renovation, the museum remains open to the public on Tuesdays-Sundays from 9 am-5pm.
For more information on the cupola renovation or the Louisiana State Museum call 504-568-6968 or 800-568-6968 or visit http://lsm.crt.state.la.us.
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Beignets Are Back!
Top to bottom: Cafe du Monde signage “Beignets Are Back!”; Patrons enjoying CDM’s first day back in business after Hurricane Katrina; CDM manager welcoming devoted patrons; Sweet New Orleans confections – beignets!
October 13, 2005 – Sweet white dust clouded the air over Jackson Square Wednesday morning and nobody in New Orleans was complaining. Powdered sugar coated beignets were back and steaming cups of cafe au lait flowed freely as the landmark Cafe Du Monde in the French Quarter reopened after a seven-week forced shut-down compliments of Hurricane Katrina.
The storm knocked out power and water to the French Market icon and scattered its employees all over the country. In the interim the Fernandez family, long time owners and managers of the ultimate New Orleans sidewalk meeting place took advantage of the hurricane holiday to steam clean the restaurant, replace old fryers and kitchen gear and shine the old coffee stand to a fare-thee-well. Normally Cafe Du Monde is open 24 hours a day closing only for Christmas Day and goes through a 2.5 ton mountain of flour every week.
It’s de rigeur in New Orleans for revelers to close out a long night of partying and playing in the French Quarter with a bracing round of chicory laced coffee and several orders of the beignets. The square pillows of floury cake are deep-fried to order and don’t even have a passing resemblance to the round glazed donuts known in the rest of the country. Some people say beignets are addictive.
All day Wednesday a cheerful and steady crowd of local beignet addicts, Quarterites, for-real visiting firemen, curious relief workers and even hardy tourists enjoyed the reawakening of a beloved institution.
Thankfully, as it has for a century and a half, Cafe Du Monde is back serving up a little bit of New Orleans heart and soul every day.
If you’re dining in the French Quarter today or tonight, check out all of your options – here’s the list of open restaurants and their Katrina hours of operation.
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Dancing to Latin and Louisiana Sounds in New Orleans
Top to Bottom: Hot Venues for Latin Music – Blue Nile, House of Blues, Tipitina’s Uptown.
Cajun and Zydeco
In Uptown New Orleans, the likeness of R&B legend Professor Longhair looks down on the dance floor of Tipitina’s (501 Napoleon Ave., 504-895-8477), a landmark music hall named for one of his tunes. But on early Sunday evenings, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., all eyes are on Bruce Daigrepont, who has hosted the Cajun Fais Do-Do at Tipitina’s for years. ‘Fais do-do’ is a Cajun term for a traditional dance party, and people certainly show up at Tipitina’s ready to dance. Skill levels vary from native Cajuns who seem born to sweep across the planks of a wooden dance floor to eager visitors learning their first steps together. Veteran band leader Daigrepont, backed by accordion, fiddle and a tight rhythm section, mixes up traditional Louisiana French music with original Cajun and Zydeco material for a very danceable blend.
A trip to New Orleans is enough to make most people want to dance in the streets — and it’s many a visitor who doesn’t bother resisting this inclination along Bourbon Street on any given night. But the city also offers a multitude of more structured opportunities to cut the carpet with a variety of theme nights and venues around town.
For a city heavy on its homegrown traditions — especially musical traditions — New Orleans has openly embraced dance styles of other cultures. While there’s nothing particularly ‘New Orleans’ about Latin American salsa dancing, for instance, it seems to fit the sultry feel of the city. Take a walk down Frenchmen Street, just across Esplanade Avenue from the French Quarter, on almost any weekend night to see how salsa tastes in New Orleans.
First stop would be the Blue Nile (532 Frenchmen St., 504-948-2583), where local Latin crooner Fredy Omar takes the colorful stage most Friday nights. A flamenco show kicks off the evening early at 7:30 p.m. and leads into free salsa dance lessons at 9:30 p.m. before Omar performs around 10:30 p.m.
Across the street and just down the block, Café Brasil (2100 Chartres St., 504-947-9386) has been a dance destination for years. Salsa is a mainstay, though the schedule can be a little unpredictable. No matter, when the place is on, it is obvious, with the crowd spilling out onto the sidewalk where a second band might be set up playing for people outside.
A little further down Frenchmen Street, the music and dance steps change tempo a bit. Café Negril (606 Frenchmen St., 504-944-4744) is a Caribbean restaurant early in the night, but on Friday and Saturday evenings the dining room tables are quickly crowded out by dancers and reggae bands. Steel drums echo, dreadlocks swing and Red Stripe beers keep flowing at this late night, island-inspired scene.
Things get going late indeed at the Rumba, a Latin music dance party held on Fridays at the House of Blues (225 Decatur St., 504-529-2583) which doesn’t start until the evening’s concert crowd has been ushered out around midnight.
Tango Time
Dancing the tango was such a rage in New Orleans early in the 20th century that a portion of the French Quarter crowded with dancehalls was nicknamed the Tango Belt. While discos are far more common in the Quarter now, tango has made a sustained comeback in recent years and today turns up in unexpected places.
The normally cool and collected vibe at the bar of the Loft 523 boutique hotel (523 Gravier St., 504-304-4555) gets downright steamy on Tuesday evenings with Planet Tango. Practically hidden down a side street in the Central Business District (though only two blocks from the French Quarter), the bar’s deconstructed, understated ambiance channels most of the attention to the dancers. Instructors show up at 8 p.m. to give free lessons to the uninitiated, and the real action gets going around 9 p.m. A D.J. provides the music, and there is generally no cover.
A similar tango scene develops at Mimi’s in the Marigny (2601 Royal St., 504-942-0690) on Wednesday evenings after 9 p.m. The comfortable, stylishly-renovated bar has become an instant classic in its bohemian neighborhood, and provides an appropriately sultry venue for Argentina’s sensuous dance obsession. The dance floor is upstairs, where large windows are kept open most of the time to take the breezes coming off the nearby river. Iron balconies provide excellent perches to cool off between numbers and enjoy the intriguing view both outside and back inside on the dance floor.
Many of the same moves are on display at Mulate’s (201 Julia St., 504-522-1492), a Cajun restaurant which features traditional music and dancing each night. Its location directly across from the convention center and close to the cruise ship terminal means Mulate’s is highly accessible to guests of the many downtown hotels, which is reflected in the usual crowd here. A regular roster of Cajun bands and performers, including La Touche, Jay Cormier, Lee Benoit and Jonno, give visitors a convincing reason to work off their catfish dinner on the dance floor.
Cajun twang gives way to the more funky rhythms of Zydeco at Mid-City Lanes Rock ‘n’ Bowl (3000 S. Carrollton Ave., 504-861-7000), a combination music hall and bowling alley where accordions and guitar riffs are punctuated with the thunder of strikes and groans of gutter balls. Thursday’s dedicated Zydeco Night in particular brings out the dancers, who get to see top touring acts direct from south Louisiana. Rock ‘n’ Bowl’s large dance floor gets a different type of workout on Wednesdays, which is Swing Night. The music has a retro sound, and many in the crowd turn up dressed in a retro look with big skirts and fedora hats. A dapper outfit isn’t necessary to have a good time, however, just a desire to move your feet.
