On the Monday before Mardi Gras known as Lundi Gras, children of all ages in the city of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana prepared for their Courir des Enfants. This annual Mardi Gras tradition started at 9:30 am in front of St. Bernard Catholic Church and ended at Teche Center for the Arts with a community gumbo and music. The children gathered together, chasing chickens through the town at stops along the parade route and collecting gumbo ingredients from community members.
Teche Center for the Arts, which puts on this amazing event every year aims to serve as the principal cultural, arts, music, education, and historical center for residents and tourists of Saint Martin Parish. The Center showcases the rich Cajun and Creole cultures of Acadiana, being sure to include children who will serve as the future artisans and historical representatives of the Parish.
The playful tradition of Chicken Runs stems from peasants in Medieval Europe who would have festivals where they begged for food, a much more acceptable action at the time. The beggars would often dress up, sing, dance, and perform silly skits as a trade for something to eat. Today, this tradition has become the Chicken Runs, a celebration unique to Cajun Country.
Just like the adult courir participants, the children arrived in their homemade outfits of fabric strips cut and sewn onto a shirt and pants. The outfit usually includes a capuchon or cone-shaped hat that is also decorated with the frilly fabric and a silly mask to hide one’s identity. The outfit is meant to represent the mockery of royals’ expensive and colorful attire back in Medieval times. Parents along with their children meticulously planned and created their special outfits months before the big day so their little ones could have their own Cajun experience.
The parade of children and their parents close by all danced around the streets as musicians led them through their route. Chickens were thrown into the air, sending the children running, with many of them ending with a chicken in a hand and a smile on their face. No chickens were actually harmed in this process. Children, their parents, and any other family members are encouraged to join in at the Teche Center at the end of the parade to partake in the community gumbo and live music.