ELLICOTTVILLE, N.Y. — The Ellicottville Winter Carnival Weekend, featuring the 25th annual Mardi Gras Parade, produced by the Ellicottville Chamber of Commerce, will be held March 10-12.
There is an expanded lineup this year for the three-day downtown festival. Everything will kick-off on March 10 with the second annual Junior Bacchus Ball. This year’s party will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. upstairs at Madigan’s and will include the crowning of the Mardi Gras King and Queen for the weekend. Those in attendance will be choosing the royals through applause.
On top of that, the upstairs of the green bar will be transformed to resemble the pomp and circumstance of a New Orleans celebration of Fat Tuesday. Food to fit the festivities will be available and music will be playing for those that want to make use of the dance floor. There will also be a costume contest at the ball. Tickets for the ball can be purchased at the Chamber of Commerce website at www.ellicottvilleny.com, and are $30 in advance or $40 the week of the party.
Things are kicking into high gear a bit earlier on March 11 in the village. In past years, the Mardi Gras parade has started off the event with lineup at 6 p.m. and start at 6:30 p.m. Those times
are not changing. What is changing is that there will be a village full of activities, including music and entertainment, starting at 3 p.m.
Parade applications for floats and walking groups can be found on the Chamber of Commerce website as well.
The honorary grand marshal of this year’s parade is King Ken Brown. Brown’s 700 Club members will lead the parade.
Also on March 11, the tradition of the annual Snow Bar at Holiday Valley will continue. The Snow Bar will be open at noon on March 11-12 with live entertainment. A full schedule of events at Holiday Valley will be available on the Chamber of Commerce website as soon as all activities and participants are final.
The costume contest on the slopes will start at noon March 12 at Holiday Valley, along with an appearance by the Downhill Dummy. Get that brave mannequin ready for the trip down the hill. The contest starts at 2 p.m. and continues until the last dummy is tossed.
For more information, visit the websites Ellicottvilleny.com or holidayvalley.com.
