Purple, green, gold, and white beads festooned ladies, gentlemen, and children of all ages at the Bayer Bayou Bash on Sunday night.

The Mardi Gras–style party began with hundreds of attendees donning jester hats and carnival masks. Clowns made balloon animals and artists drew caricatures while everyone feasted on local foods—including po'boy sandwiches, red beans and rice, catfish, and miniature pecan and sweet potato pies.

A parade was the highlight of the evening. New Orleans police officers on motorcycles and jesters on stilts led floats and a marching band from McDonogh 35 High School around the hall three times. People riding on the floats threw armfuls of beads into the crowd.

The festivities ended with a little line dancing and a version of a traditional local "second line" parade, which involves people following a brass band down the street while swinging a handkerchief over their heads and doing a shuffle step. At the bash, attendees followed a clown through the crowd while waving their napkins.