Headin’ down south!
This is the story of how Felix and Fingers discovered New Orleans. It all started last year when we got a call from Sofia. She said she was getting married and wanted us to play the after party of her wedding at the Elms Mansion. The prospect of going to New Orleans was exciting. Having heard it is one of the go-to music spots in America, I was ashamed to be nearing my 30th birthday and to have never have been there! Pretty soon the show was booked, and our plans began!
The Elms Mansion Stage
Oh When Felix and Fingers go Marching in!
The trip down was great. We had spoken to our friend Big Joe Kennedy about using some of his gear, so luckily we didn’t need to travel with too much of our own equipment. We stayed in La Richelieu Hotel, and it was such a beautiful place. Apparently it is haunted, but I only saw one or two ghosts, so I don’t know if I believe it. I could go on and on about our shananigans in New Orleans, but I might save those for another blog. 🙂
Party Time at the Elms Mansion!
The Foyer at Elms Mansion
We arrived at the Elms Mansion, the party was already in full swing underneath a tent outside. There was a Big Band playing during dinner, and a DJ was going to perform for the dancing portion. The dueling pianos were a surprise for the guests, so we had to sneak in and set up while everyone was outside having fun.
Elms Mansion Fireplace
My first thought about the Elms Mansion literally was, “Wow. This is one of the nicest venues I’ve played at.” Everything was beautiful. The decor, the furnature, the floors, the walls… It was built in 1869, and looks as flawless as it must have the day it opened its doors 150 years ago. I mean, check out these picture. Breathtaking. You have to see this place in real life. Check it out here.
After a few minutes of walking around the Elms Mansion with my jaw dropped, we set up the show. It looked great on the small stage in one of the rooms. We even shared the stage with a baby grand piano.
Beautiful tables at Elms Mansion
When we finished setting up, we walked outside to the party and went through the buffet line. We’d spent all weekend in New Orleans, and the food the Elms Mansion chef preared was the best! We had shrimp and grits, crawfish and corn pasta, crab cakes, bbq pork, and bananas foster. It was amazing. Everything on the menu was delicious.
Surprise!
Dancing at Elms mansion
Outside, the DJ finished his set. After the traditional New Orleans “second line” (look it up), the whole party ended up inside the Elms Mansion. Sofia shouted out, “We’re ready!” and we kicked off the show. People were excited to see a dueling pianos show set up. In no time requests were pouring in. It was literally two hours of non-stop wall to wall dancing. Since this was a destination wedding, and many of the guests were from Miami, a highlight of the evening was definitely when someone requested the town’s namesake song by Will Smith. You know…. Gettin’ Jiggy With It. Just kidding. 😉
Having fun taking pictures,
Our New Home
We loved the Elms Mansion and New Orleans so much that we’ve decided to set up a new base of operations there! We still run our Chicago network, but we are please to announce our new home base down south. Read all about what we can do by reading this blog.
We had a blast at the Elms Mansion, and we know you will too if you hold your wedding there. If you do, we hope you’ll bring us along for the ride!
BTW – We worked with Kim at Wink event planning and they killed it! Super nice and totally had everything under control and flowing smoothly. There’s no reason not to trust them with your wedding! Here’s the website: winkeventplanning.com
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