People walk past parts of Mardi Gras floats past and present, at Mardi Gras World, where Kern Studios creates and stores some of their floats, in New Orleans, Friday, Feb. 12, 2021. New Orleans’ annual pre-Lenten Mardi Gras celebration is muted this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Parades canceled. Bars closed. Crowds suppressed. Mardi Gras joy is muted this year in New Orleans as authorities seek to stifle the coronavirus’s spread. And it’s a blow to the tradition-bound city’s party-loving soul.
