French Quarter Festival returns Sept. 30-Oct. 2

New Orleans — The non-profit French Quarter Festivals announces the return of French Quarter Festival presented by Chevron.
The one-time-only fall edition of French Quarter Festival takes place Sept. 30 to Oct. 2 across venues and stages in the French Quarter neighborhood, according to the French Quarter Festivals news release. Attendees will experience the world’s largest celebration of Louisiana’s food, music and culture during the free three-day event.
At the city of New Orleans’ request, the organizers have consolidated festival activities into three days.
The event will bring regional cuisine from more than 50 community restaurants, hundreds of Louisiana musicians on 19 stages, and special events that celebrate New Orleans’ diverse, unique culture. The festival will operate from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. daily.
“Throughout the COVID crisis, we have strengthened our ability to remain flexible,” said Emily Madero, CEO of French Quarter Festivals. “As one of the largest free music and food festivals in the United States, we always want to ensure our impact is in the best interest of the City and our French Quarter neighbors and businesses.
“For fans, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to enjoy both French Quarter Fest and a Saints game on the same weekend! We’re bringing together our favorite hometown festival and hometown team — we couldn’t script a better celebration to memorialize the resilience of NOLA and the return to normal life.”
The 2021 French Quarter Festival lineup is stacked with a broad range of Louisiana artists from several genres. Organizers have prioritized the booking of many bands from the 2020 lineup to curate more than 200 acts across 19 stages throughout the historic French Quarter.
Artists making their debut include Rickie Lee Jones, Big Chief Juan Pardo & The Golden Comanches, Fermín Ceballos + Merengue-4FOUR, Sporty’s Brass Band, Chapel Hart Band, and Lilli Lewis.
Returning favorites include Tank and the Bangas, John Boutté, Amanda Shaw, and hundreds more.
Attendees can experience Louisiana legends each night of festival, thanks to the Chevron Evening Concert Series, which returns in 2021 with Waterseed, Irma Thomas, and Big Chief Bo Dollis Jr. & the Wild Magnolias.
Fest fans visiting Jackson Square will find the GE Stage with a lineup of New Orleans’ most respected artists and culture-bearers including Preservation Brass, Robin Barnes, and James Andrews.
The riverfront Abita Beer Stage brings three days of music including Tank and the Bangas, Rickie Lee Jones, Flow Tribe, Sweet Crude, Kermit Ruffins, and Dirty Dozen Brass Band.
At the Tropical Isle Hand Grenade Stage, the lineup includes Little Freddie King, John Boutte, Deacon John, and Papa Gros.
At the New Orleans Jazz Museum, brass bands will be featured on the Louisiana Fish Fry Stage. The WWL-TV Esplanade in the Shade Stage brings music from crowd favorites like Tin Men, Sarah Quintana, Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes, Dash Rip Rock, Lynn Drury, and Astral Project.
Street stages on Bourbon and Royal streets will also return with music Oct. 1-2. The complete schedule will be released in August at frenchquarterfest.org.
The organization is committed to a family friendly celebration for 2021. Youth performances will be at Ernie’s Schoolhouse Stage and kids-centric entertainment at the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park. Organizers also announce the return of the Chevron “STEM” Zone (science, technology, engineering, and math) to the Natchez Wharf at the foot of Toulouse Street at the River. Programming details will be released in July.
Free dance lessons sponsored by the French Market Corporation will return to the Chevron and French Market Traditional Jazz stages.
French Quarter Festival’s culinary lineup offers attendees the opportunity to sample food from places such as Broussard’s Restaurant & Courtyard, Miss Linda the Yakamein Lady, Vaucresson Sausage, We Dats Chicken and Shrimp, Galatorie’s Restaurant, Morrow’s Nola, to name a few.
Prior to the start of the festival, French Quarter Festivals supporters will take a celebratory dinner cruise with the Dukes of Dixieland, led by Grammy winner Kevin Clark, on the roof top viewing deck on Sept. 29. From its decks fans will receive a sneak peek at the festival production as Woldenberg Park is getting its finishing touches for opening day. A generous portion of every ticket goes toward supporting French Quarter Festivals. Tickets including cruise, dinner, music and live narration are available at reserve.neworleanssteamboat.com/FQF/8582.html.
The NOLA.com Fest Family Experience will return this year. Members will experience French Quarter Festival like a true insider with a hospitality lounge, elevated viewing stand, private bars, air-conditioned restrooms, exclusive programming and more. Passes are sold as three-day weekend passes for $299, or daily passes for $129. The passes are now available online at frenchquarterfest.org/fest-family.
Festival organizers are teaming up with the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program to launch a cleaner and healthier festival season in Louisiana. The Geauxing Green initiative will focus on marine debris prevention by using reusable, recyclable, and compostable food and drink products at the festival.
In addition, attendees will be greeted by Green Team staff that will be on hand throughout the festival grounds to guide the public in the use of recycling and composting stations.
The non-profit French Quarter Festivals provides community events that welcome locals and guests.