Devastating and deadly floods have hammered much of Louisiana over the past few days, forcing thousands of people to evacuate and leaving many of them homeless.
It’s a dire situation that is all too familiar for the people of New Orleans, who experienced a similar tragedy when Hurricane Katrina’s floodwaters inundated the city nearly 11 years ago.
A list of participating comedy shows. (Click to enlarge)
Unsurprisingly, the ongoing floods have inspired countless New Orleanians to donate their time, money and supplies to the various relief efforts taking place across the state. Among them is a network of local comedians called the Eiron Alliance, who have launched A Week of Giving for Louisiana Flood Victims in order to collect supplies and funds for victims of the disaster.
“My friends Jonathan and Julia Pretus had put a notice on Facebook saying that they had access to this big truck and if people could drop off supplies right to their house, they would take them directly to Baton Rouge. It went so well that they decided to do it again this week. ” says Eiron Alliance founder Andrew Healan. “So I asked if I could get as many comedy shows as possible to collection donations and they said ‘of course. I sent a big message blast to everyone who runs the shows in town and pretty much everyone responded immediately.”
The Pretuses (Jonathan is the lead singer for rock outfit The Breton Sound) drove their first truckload to Celtic Studios, a Baton Rouge production facility that has been transformed into a shelter for evacuees. Their next truckload will go to a flood shelter this Saturday, though the exact destination has not yet been determined and will be selected based on where it’s needed at the time.
The Eiron Alliance will be collecting supplies for the Pretuses’ effort at comedy shows throughout the city this week, including performances at the New Movement, Howlin’ Wolf, Dragon’s Den, Eiffel Society and Hi-Ho Lounge. They’re looking for individually wrapped non-perishables, unopened packs of underwear and socks, cleaning supplies, toiletries, baby supplies, pet supplies and school supplies.
“This is very grass roots. It’s bringing the supplies that are needed directly to the people that need them. No administrative cost, no red tape,” Healan explains. “We in Louisiana have dealt with disasters before, and know that sometimes the big relief organizations aren’t the best ones to do it . We’re people from Louisiana helping people from Louisiana.”
A list of participating shows can be found below. Those that would like to contribute to this relief effort can bring supplies to 3320 Nashville Avenue in New Orleans. WWLTV has also created a comprehensive list of supply drop-offs throughout the metropolitan area.
Eiron Alliance: A Week of Giving for Louisiana Flood Victims
TUESDAY AUGUST 16
Comedy Beast | August
The Howlin’ Wolf
8:30
BingOh! at Bar Redux: Fairytales Edition
Bar Redux
8:00
Comedy Catastrophe
Lost Love Lounge
10:30
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 17
The Dean’s List Show – Flood Relief Talent Show
The New Movement
8:00
Chris & Tami
The New Movement
9:30
THURSDAY AUGUST 18
Local Uproar present Night Church: August
Sidney’s Saloon
8:30
Superlative Slacker, Dusty Night
The New Movement
8:00 & 9:30
Hot Sauce
The Voodoo Lounge
8:30
FRIDAY AUGUST 19
Wait, What?
Hi-Ho Lounge
8:00
Special Features, The Franchise, Mixtape
The New Movement
7:30, 9:30, 10:30
Pure Evil: Villains Give Back! a Charity Show Benefitting Flood Relief
Eiffel Society
10:00
Comedy Fuck Yeah
The Dragon’s Den
8:30
