LIGHTING OF THE MARDI GRAS TREE

The FREE, spectacular Lighting of the Mardi Gras Tree and Brass Band Showcase will take place Saturday, Jan. 10, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. in Mardi Gras Park. Experience the fun, music and magic that mark the beginning of this festive season. Here's the order of events: 

5:45 p.m. Magnolia Breeze Youth Ensemble (Mobile)
6:20 p.m. Mardi Gras Tree Lighting
6:30 p.m. Second Line Society Brass Band (Mobile)
7:10 p.m. 9th Avenue Brass Band (Pensacola)
7:45 p.m. Southern Komfort Brass Band (Jackson, Mississippi)

There also will be food trucks and other vendors at this Carnival celebration in Mobile, the birthplace of Mardi Gras. Learn more and register as a vendor at www.cityofmobile.org/events.