Making Mardi Gras exhibit opens at the Historic New Orleans Collection

Written By Alicia Vial

Situation

Mardi Gras is the ultimate reminder that New Orleans shares its history and culture with the world, but the massive crowds and emphasis on beads and throws have become the face of Mardi Gras over the years. But the Historic New Orleans Collection (HNOC), a free museum in the heart of the French Quarter, wanted to tell a fuller story of the season, one that went beyond the popular depictions of booze and beads to include the countless people, working separately or collaboratively from all walks of life and corners of the city to continually adapt and create the experience that is Mardi Gras each year.  Their exhibition, Making Mardi Gras, aimed to correct the misunderstanding that those elements are not the only parts of Carnival.

Gambel Communications created an external relations campaign to promote the opening of Making Mardi Gras and its complementary programs, and to reinforce their goal of correcting misunderstandings around Carnival season.  

Strategy

Media outreach was conducted in advance of the public opening of Making Mardi Gras utilizing tactics such as press releases, media alerts, community calendar listings and targeted pitches. Gambel Communications coordinated several one-on-one advance tours for local media with the lead curator before the exhibition opened. Once open for public view, Gambel Communications coordinated in-gallery morning show interviews with all four New Orleans’ television stations as well as interviews with talk radio hosts and print publications. 

HNOC’s annual Williams Research Center Symposium was held in conjunction with Making Mardi Gras. Gambel identified key individuals within the community that could add value to several of the symposium discussions and brokered meetings between those individuals and HNOC. Originally planned to take place at Mardi Gras World and consist of nine scheduled discussions, a spike in COVID-19 cases caused HNOC to shift the event from in-person to virtual. The sessions were pre-recorded and made available to the public via YouTube over the course of several weeks. Due to the change in the way the symposium would be structured, Gambel Communications adjusted its approach to media outreach. Due to the high volume of YouTube content that would now be available at various dates, Gamble opted to focus media relations efforts on the most anticipated discussion, “In Conversations with Big Chiefs: Traditions and Music of Mardi Gras Indians” where in a rare gathering, Mardi Gras Indian chiefs told the story of masking traditions through their lived experience. Gambel’s targeted media outreach around this discussion resulted in multiple story placements and YouTube views that accounted for more than 50% of the symposium’s total views.  

While not directly related to Making Mardi Gras, HNOC’s museum store, The Shop, was secured as a second location for the King Cake Hub where more than 60 varieties of king cake from more than 14 local bakeries were available for purchase under one roof. Additionally, The Shop distributed The Big Book of King Cakes by local food and travel writer, Matt Haines. To strengthen community relations and partnerships with the King Cake Hub and Matt Haines, Gambel Communications incorporated the two elements into the overall campaign tactics.

Results

As a direct result of Gambel Communication’s Making Mardi Gras external relations campaign, the following results were achieved:

  • 170 story placements including two national stories on CBS News

  • 205.2 million story views

  • 8,2821 views of the Williams Research Center Symposium sessions

  • 15,282 visitors viewed Making Mardi Gras

Overall, the Making Mardi Gras campaign surpassed the established goals. As a result, when HNOC closed the exhibition to make way for another exhibit, they made the decision to open a condensed version of Making Mardi Gras in another part of their French Quarter museum to allow visitors more time to experience the exhibit.   

Alicia Vial

Alicia Vial is a New Orleans native with more than a decade of experience elevating client stories and leading crisis response. As the senior director of strategy, Alicia acts as a leader within the Gambel Communications team ensuring each agency team member is positioned to deliver strategic public relations services that meet the highest standards of the industry. In addition to supporting the agency’s long-term business growth and development, she coordinates day-to-day account services and oversees strategic direction while staying abreast of best practices and industry trends to provide innovative solutions to meet client’s needs.

Before joining Gambel Communications, Alicia served as the communications director for the Louisiana SPCA, the oldest and largest animal welfare organization in Louisiana that impacts more than 74,000 animals per year. During her nearly eight-year tenure, Alicia oversaw numerous crises, served on national communication taskforces, oversaw all aspects of internal and external relations and worked alongside the development department to raise critical funding. Prior to that, she worked in the fast-paced New Orleans hospitality industry focusing on digital public relations for multiple hotels.

Alicia is a member of the Public Relations Association of Louisiana (PRAL), Southern Public Relations Federation (SPRF), a board member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) New Orleans Chapter and a member of the New Orleans Regional Leadership Institute. An accredited public relations practitioner (APR), Alicia is also certified in crisis communications, organizational leadership, content marketing and social media.

A well respected and trusted public relations practitioner, Alicia has been recognized by SPRF as a ‘Senior Practitioner of the Year’. Dubbed early on in her career as one to watch, she also received the ‘Rising Star’ award by PRAL and was profiled in St. Charles Avenue Magazine as part of their Young Bloods series. Most recently, she was recognized at PRSA’s annual Fleurish Awards and received four Awards of Excellence for her work along with the ‘Plate Spinner’ award for her efforts on the board of directors for the chapter.

An LSU graduate, Alicia received a bachelor's degree in mass communications with a concentration in public relations and minors in business administration and leadership development. She is a frequent speaker and presenter on public relations topics, most recently presenting at the Jefferson Economic Development Commission and SPRF annual conference.

When Alicia is not at work, you can find her at the ballpark with her three boys or cheering on the Tigers in Death Valley.

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