(C) Verite News New Orleans
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Inside the Bunch Club's Carnival ball [1]
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Date: 2025-03-03
For many, live music, an open bar and socializing into the early morning is the ideal way to celebrate Carnival season.
One such party is hosted by some of the most accomplished and well-recognized Black men in New Orleans: the Bunch Club. The prestigious club held its annual Carnival Dance on Friday night (Feb. 28) at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in New Orleans.
“This is a side of New Orleans that a lot of people don’t get a chance to see,” said G. Robert Wilburn IV, a member of three years.
Hundreds attended the free but invite-only event. There was no shortage of highly accomplished professionals in the room — law, medicine and business are common fields among members and attendees alike. The hotel ballroom was a place to see and be seen; several partygoers pointed out New Orleans City Council Vice President Helena Moreno, who is running for mayor.
“It’s a nice mixture of who’s who in New Orleans,” said Daryl Anderson, an attendee. “I see a lot of my friends who are attorneys, who are doctors, fraternity brothers, women I work out at the gym with, it’s a little bit of everyone here.”
It was a night of socializing ripe with networking opportunities, but also casual mingling.
“I come here, I look around … I’m a single man. I’m looking for a wife. So I come here to see if there are any single women,” Anderson said.
For many, the party is a chance to reconnect with people they haven’t seen in a long time. With drinks flowing, line dancing and group pictures, it had the feel of a family reunion.
“You’re able to just let your hair down for a little bit, and just cut a rug and enjoy yourself, and just revel in the Carnival season that is New Orleans,” Wilburn said.
Bunch Club and its history
G. Robert Wilburn IV wears the Bunch Club medallion, medal and pin with the club’s insignia at the club’s Carnival dance on Feb. 28, 2025. Credit: Jasmine Robinson / Verite News
The club’s 52 members were identifiable by the large, gold medallion worn around their necks, with the club’s insignia on it. The insignia calls back to the club’s 108-year-old history.
The Bunch Club and its annual dance were established in 1917. It was largely formed by Pullman Porters as another avenue for Black Americans to participate in Carnival season. It’s among the city’s oldest existing Black social clubs, along with the Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club and others.
The party has retained traditions from the early days, despite interruptions during the Civil Rights Movement and Hurricane Katrina.
And although it’s casually called “Bunch Ball,” it’s technically not a ball – there are no debutantes. And the club does not ride in parades; its sole public appearance of members is the annual party.
The club itself is exclusive. It can take years for members to be accepted, and each year only two or so people get in. The Bunch Club counts among its members former New Orleans Mayor Sidney Barthelemy, the banker Charles Teamer Sr. and the parking magnate Ronald V. Burns Sr.
Sons of members can skip the recruitment process and are invited in as legacy members. The club has fostered deep familial ties during its century-long history.
“You have longtime New Orleans history here. A lot of families that know each other over that period of time. You’re talking about generations of people that know each other,” said Louis Keyes, a member of five years.
Keyes only recently learned that his father, grandfather and his grandfather’s brother were members. And he came across an old journal from his mother, who in 1932 wrote about attending the Bunch party at the Pythian Temple downtown.
“It’s got that long of a history,” Keyes said about the club.
Once inducted, most Bunch members remain members for the rest of their lives. It’s why many members are older in age. But the club has always been an organization led by the Black community’s elders, Janie Blackmon said, an attendee at the party.
“The foundation was laid by the elders. They laid the foundation. They didn’t have the opportunities, but they made sure their children had it, and their children had it. So what you’re looking at is legacy,” Blackmon said.
On Friday, James Carter was attending the party for the first time, he said. Carter recently marked another first – he was crowned the first Black king in the Krewe of ALLA’s 93-year history.
For Carter and others, the Bunch party is overlooked as an important part of Carnival season and a celebration of Mardi Gras.
“The world knows about Mardi Gras in one context, but they don’t know about stuff like the Bunch Ball,” Carter said.
The pageantry of the event
All aspects of the party are steeped in tradition, but it’s most evident in the main spectacle of the night, called “The March,” and a waltz that follows it.
At midnight, members entered the ballroom with their wives and partners on their arms, the couples in a single-file line. Upon reaching the dance floor in the center of the ballroom, couples separated, and the men and women lined opposite sides of the dance floor. The club’s president, Norman Robinson, gave a brief word.
“The women get to parade their dresses. That’s one of the highlights. It’s traditional. I’ve been doing it for 50 years,” said Dr. Warren McKenna Jr., one of the longest-serving members in the club.
Next, partners rejoined for a short waltz. The swaying couples – some on beat, some off beat – was a rare moment of disorganization during the structured events.
In a joking manner, McKenna said that a lot of the men struggle with the waltz, but not him.
“I had a little prep during the week,” he said.
The pageantry wasn’t over after the waltz. Next, the couples lined up and circled the dance floor for onlookers to see, while the band played a rendition of “O Christmas Tree.”
“It is a flex in the community to say, ‘Here is my wife. Here’s how we present.’ I don’t think that there’s anything more beautiful than to see Black families. And that’s what we’re seeing out there,” said Pamela Wood, a guest at the event.
The most eye-catching element of the march were the accessories donned by the members for that moment: a marching-band style hat with a plume, a red cape tied around the neck and white gloves to complete the look.
These fashion elements are said to be part of the club’s tradition since the beginning.
“The pomp and circumstance is not to be ignored,” Wood said.
Juan Sorapuru, a friend of Wood’s and a fellow fashion enthusiast, was more on the fence about the regalia.
“I wonder why, do [we] as Black people, have to present ourselves in a certain way?” Sorapuru said. “Because we’ve been denied access forever. In order to gain the respect and the consideration of the majority, we have to present like the majority. Then, you’ve got to excel a little bit beyond the majority to be recognized. See, I’m not leaving the house unless someone recognizes me.”
The formal dress for the party is also an important aspect of the tradition. There’s a strict dress code, and people in past years have been kicked out for not following it.
Women were required to wear an ankle-length gown, and men were restricted to a black tuxedo and black leather dress shoes.
Sorapuru still found a way to dress expressively within the rules. He wore a bedazzled dress shirt underneath a black velvet suit, with a tuft of white feathers standing in for a traditional pocket square.
“To not be ignored … that’s always my goal,” Sorapuru said of his outfit. “I want to be recognized, acknowledged, and not forgotten.”
He alluded to the important role that fashion plays in expression, specifically at formal events like the Bunch party.
“You got to look at the history of Black people dressing up,” he said.
Around 1 a.m., the ballroom slowly began clearing out. Many people at the party were leaving to get to the Zulu Ball, which was happening at the same time.
Compared to Zulu’s, the Bunch dance is a slower-paced affair. But for the club’s members, this is what they look forward to each Carnival season.
“This is usually the climax for my Mardi Gras. This is the big event,” McKenna said.
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