“Suite:  in music, group of self-contained instrumental movements of varying character, usually in the same key.  During the 17th and 18th centuries, the period of its greatest importance, the suite consisted principally of dance movements.” — Encyclopedia Britannica

In a country founded on puritan ideals, New Orleans is an anomaly, a continuing reminder of America’s true, unpolished self.  Unlike other cities that are able and willing to re-conceive themselves every few decades, geography and humidity conspire to preserve New Orleans in a semi-timeless state.  Every culture, religion, food, and drink that has come into New Orleans has added to and been subsumed into the city’s unique gumbo.

New Orleans Suite is a raucous performance piece dedicated to the city we love, featuring a world of characters who have been here since the birth of the city, singing the same songs, enjoying the same nights of lust and violence, repenting the same sins, over and over again.

Aren’t we all sinners and saints?  Don’t we strive for perfection while we crave debauchery?  Sometimes we need whisky to shake the spirit free, sometimes we need the movement of the Holy Ghost.  In New Orleans Suite, we explore the decadence and the holiness that live side by side in our city, and in us.

Premiered May 27-June 12, 2005 at New Orleans’ Contemporary Arts Center (CAC) as the sixth production in ArtSpot's two-year residency.