When the carnival rolls into New Orleans it has a unique location in mind. Usually the Night Carnival sets up in an open field, on some outskirt that for a short time gets to become the center of the city. In New Orleans it is different. The Carnival appears over the corpse of an old amusement park.
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and ripped the heart of fun right out of the city, and the Night Carnival intends to bring it back. This 140-Acre surreal setting has morphed into a nightmarish land of twisted dreams; perfect for the carnival that was often described as both ethereal and phantasm.
And a short time, they would breathe new life into this lost world. Tents are wound through the skeletons of old roller-costers, dancing girls in the bumper cars. There will be laughter, fear and inevitable heartbreak to follow.
The scale of their operation should have taken a week or more, yet somehow this haunted place is transformed in a matter of days. Everyone knows their place, everyone gets right to their job, trapeze are pulled into the air, and the village is erected without anyone really needing to be told what to do. Performers and workers meet their neighbors once more and get a chance to stretch their legs, and before anyone knows it the opening sign is lit.
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city in the state of Louisiana. Located in southeastern Louisiana, straddling the Mississippi River, it sits below sea level and is at a particularly strong risk of flooding during sever weather as the water is only held back by a series of levies.
The city is named after the Duke of Orleans, who reigned as Regent for Louis XV from 1715 to 1723, as it was established by French colonists and strongly influenced by their European culture. It is well known for its distinct French and Spanish Creole architecture, as well as its cross-cultural and multilingual heritage. Famous for its cuisine, music (particularly as the birthplace of jazz), and its annual celebrations and festivals, most notably Mardi Gras, dating to French colonial times, this city is often referred to as the "most unique" in the United States.
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