d4 Tabletop Gaming Café makes a roll on Oak Street

The new d4 Tabletop Gaming Café offers a hub for New Orleans card and board game players to meet, eat, and play for hours long on Oak Street. Owners Mark and Tracy Meyer opened the café in March this year. Mark Meyer is a city local with 20 years in the restaurant business, and Tracy Meyer has over 10 years in the business as a pastry cook. Meyer said he and his wife “dreamed up” the idea to combine their love for gaming with their cooking experience, since Meyer needed to create a job for himself after injuring his back. After a two year process, they opened d4 in March this year.

Local hip-hop artists recruit rapper Chuck Inglish for Howlin’ Wolf show

“The Coolest Wans: Spun by Chuck Inglish”, a hip hop show full of local performers, will feature rapper Chuck Inglish DJ’ing at the Howlin’ Wolf. The Saturday (May 20) show at The Howlin’ Wolf’s “porch” stage will host rappers Rodo, Gemellus, Tay Miles, OG Muchee, and Adam Dollar$. The show begins with DJ sets by Chuck Inglish, one half of the indie hip-hop duo The Cool Kids, and local DJ Legatron Prime. Vendors selling clothing and art will also be at the show. The Coolest Wans is presented by former Loyola University New Orleans student Michael Duckworth, also known as recording artist Mike Hazel with the DoloWan collective, and Amanda Paige, known by the organizer label The Murals.

BUKU Preview: Ambré Perkins

R&B Singer and New Orleans native Ambré Perkins will be performing her first festival show and first live performance of 2017 at this year’s BUKU Music + Art Project. Perkins said she looks forward to playing in front a broader audience that may be seeking to hear artists they’ve never known prior. “It’s very open-minded usually,” Perkins said. “So people go there and they’re open to new artists. Actually, that’s probably what they want to see the most, artists that they’ve never heard of and to experience something different.”

In looking to perform at another New Orleans stage for the first time, Perkins said the city musically influences the sounds she picks and the way she approaches melodies and cadences.

2017 closes the curtains on La Nuit Comedy Theater on Freret Street

La Nuit Comedy Theater — a pioneering venue for comedy in New Orleans, and one of the last pre-Katrina businesses remaining on Freret Street — closed its doors for the final time last month, its owner said. La Nuit Comedy Theater owner Yvonne Landry first came back to her home in New Orleans 14 years ago, and she quipped she decided to start a comedy theater almost out of “boredom.” Having worked in improvisation since 1992, Landry thought she had trained a lot of people, so she saw opening on Freret as a fun move. “When I moved to New Orleans I figured I would play some tennis and marry a doctor, but neither one of those things really worked out,” Landry said. “I don’t know how to play tennis and I don’t know any doctors, so I just did improv.”

During Landry’s stint in Chicago doing live theater work, she had lived near a commercial corridor close to a university area that she always thought would be a good fit for a comedy venue.

Lycée Francais celebrates first team sports victory

The Lycée Français de la Nouvelle-Orléans board met this Monday and praised the school’s athletics program for their first victory in flag football and for 5th grader Chase Duvernay winning a medal in every cross country event this fall sports season — the first student athlete to win a sports medal in the young school’s history. The 4th to 6th grade flag football team achieved their first team sport victory for the school with a 20-13 win over Victory Academy. The game took place on Oct. 4 at St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School.

“Jonah Stands Up” film awarded for portrayal of comedian, activist, mayoral candidate

Even the death of her subject did not discontinue the message of director Hannah Engelson’s documentary about Uptown resident, comedian and disabilities advocate Jonah Bascle, which won a special jury mention at this year’s New Orleans Film Festival. “My original intention was just to give a well-rounded picture of this person and I think I still accomplished that,” Engelson said. Engelson met Bascle in November 2010, after Bascle had earlier in the year run for mayor to bring awareness to the lack of services in New Orleans for disabled residents. They met at a meetup for a film group. “He told me he was making a documentary about himself and that I could help.

Lycee Francais may need more space sooner than later

After starting classes at its new temporary location on South Carrollton Avenue this fall, Lycée Français de la Nouvelle-Orléans is already looking for ways to maximize its use of the space as the school continues to grow, officials said this week. Lycee board president Michael Williams said that discussion is ongoing on the use of space on the temporary campus at Central St. Matthew UCC on 1333 South Carrollton. The school’s facilities committee isn’t ready to come to the board with anything just yet, Williams said, but has held preliminary conversations. “There have been discussions that we may need space sooner than previously anticipated, based on the costs of future renovations on the other side of the building,” Williams said during a meeting of the school’s governing board Monday night.

Local business owners to share expertise at StayLocal event

StayLocal, Greater New Orleans’ independent business alliance, will host NOLA Know-How, an event to showcase business-to-business (B2B) companies. The free event takes place on Thursday, June 16 at the People’s Health New Orleans Jazz Market and will feature TED-style talks by local business thought leaders based on the theme “Survival of the Fittest”. NOLA Know-How will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. Doors open at 4 p.m. for networking and browsing at the resource fair; talks will begin promptly at 6 p.m. People’s Health New Orleans Jazz Market is located at 1436 OC Haley Blvd. “If you want the insights only experience can teach you, this is an event you don’t want to miss,” says NOLA Know-How organizer and StayLocal interim program manager, Meredith Cherney. “From banking, accounting, and web design to background checks and payroll providers, New Orleans has so many local service provider options.

Informative stroll celebrates National Preservation Month

The Historic District Landmarks Commission staff is hosting an informative stroll in the Uptown New Orleans area this Thursday evening, May 26, in celebration of National Preservation Month.The informative stroll in the Uptown area will start at 5:30 p.m. at Sophie Wright Place and St. Mary Street. For more information, call 504-658-7040.

Martin Wine Cellar to host 70-year anniversary open house

The Martin Wine Cellar location on Baronne Street will host an anniversary open house event this Tuesday, May 24 to celebrate the exact date the original Martin’s location on Baronne Street opened in 1946. The event is free and open to the public and will feature live music, giveaways, and hors d’oeuvres.The anniversary open house will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. at Martin Wine Cellar, located on 3827 Baronne Street.