By Doris Maricle

dmaricle@americanpress.com

By Doris Maricle

dmaricle@americanpress.com

JENNINGS —The city is kicking off Mardi Gras in style this Saturday with the 27th annual Jennings Mardi Gras Festival and the 14th annual Squeezebox Shootout accordion championship.

The festivities feature a day of family fun and entertainment downtown with live music, food vendors and a parade.

The Krewe de Who’s all-day run will also be held Saturday. The run will visit area nursing homes and the veterans home.

Line-up for the run will begin at 8 a.m. at the Jennings fairgrounds on La. 26. Floats will leave the fairgrounds at 9 a.m.

At 10 a.m., Kegan Navarre and Friends will take the stage at the Strand Theater, 432 N. Main St., to perform before the start of the Squeezebox Shootout. The band will also perform 2-4 p.m. in Founders Park on Main Street.

Food vendors will be offering hamburgers, sandwiches, alligator and chicken on a stick, sausage on a bun, pork steaks, nachos, funnel cakes and more in and around Founders Park, 10:30 a.m.-4 p.m.

The fun continues at 11 a.m. when the Squeezebox Shootout Cajun Accordion Championship takes center stage at the Strand Theatre.

“The Squeezebox Shootout is our way of keeping the heritage alive and it gives a chance for these young musicians to show off their talents,” City Project Coordinator Lin Fake said.

General admission is $7 for adults with children 12 and under and seniors age 60 and older $5. Tickets are available at the door.

Doors open at 10 a.m.; the competition begins at 11 a.m.

The Shootout is open to Cajun, single-row diatonic accordion players of all ages and performance levels.

There will be four divisions: youth, age 12 and under; junior, age 13-18; adult age 19 and older. The professional division is open to all ages.

There is no registration fee for the contest, but accordionists must register to compete.

Trophies and cash prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place in all amateur divisions. The professional division will have only one winner.

The parade rolls along Main Street at 4 p.m. Line-up begins at 2:30 p.m. at the corner of North Main Street and Shankland Avenue. The parade will continue along Main Street, turning east on Market Street near City Hall where it will end.

“In the tradition of Mardi Gras, you have to have a parade,” Fake said.

The parade traditionally draws more than 25 entries, including dozens of Mardi Gras crews, large floats, horses, motorcycles and more. The Shriner’s will have a train, fire truck and drifters in this year’s parade.

The parade will also feature plenty of colorful beads, coins, trinkets and other throws.

There is no entry for the parade, but participants must complete an entry application.

All events, except the Shootout, are open free to the public.

All events will be held rain or sun except for the outdoor entertainment in the park.

For more information on the festivities, call 821-5532 or email tuppermuseum@city ofjennings.com.

For information on the run, contact Dana Daigle at 616-0111.