Dunedin's Mardis Gras Festival Is Back: Let The Good Times Roll

DUNEDIN, FL — Laissez les bons temps rouler.

Here's yet another reason to love downtown Dunedin. A colorful parade of more than 50 floats will wind its way through downtown Dunedin Saturday night as the annual Dunedin Mardi Gras event resumes this year after being canceled due to the pandemic.

One of the city's most anticipated events, it's the ideal opportunity to kick off the pandemic blues and have a last hurrah before the Lenten season begins.

The Downtown Dunedin Merchants Association has been preparing all year long, so dress in your most flamboyant costumes and get ready to indulge with live music, food, drinks and dancing in the streets.

This year's festival kicks off at 2 p.m. Saturday on the Main Stage at the newly renovated Pioneer Park, 420 Main St, Dunedin, with a concert by Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers.

Dwayne "Dopsie" Rubin hails from one of the most influential Zydeco families in the world. Although inspired by tradition, Rubin has developed his own high-energy style that defies stereotypes and blazes a refreshingly distinct path for 21st-century Zydeco music.

Check out his music below.

The Jazz Phools will follow from 3:45 to 5 p.m. These six Tampa Bay musicians are devoted to the energetic performance of hot jazz of the '20s and '30s, Dixieland, New Orleans jazz and swing standards. Click here to check out their live performances.

At 5:30 p.m.,6 Volt Rodeo will hit the stage.

From local bars and craft breweries to daylong festivals and swing dances around West Central Florida, 6 Volt Rodeo's rousing brand of Western swing music has enticed hundreds to the dance floor. Check out their music here.

At 7 p.m., all eyes will turn to Main Street where vibrant, fanciful floats designed by Dunedin businesses, krewes and civic organizations will parade down the street.

The music will start back up at 8 p.m. with T-Bone Hamilton’s Big Easy Revue.

Featuring the authentic sounds of the Big Easy, T-Bone Hamilton's eight-piece horn band performs New Orleans funk and Texas blues, with a dose of jazz tossed in. The band pays homage to NOLA artists like the Neville Brothers, The Funky Meters and Dr. John.

Click below to sample their sound.

As a finale, T Broussard will take the stage at 9:45 p.m., performing zydeco and Creole music.

Bryant Keith "T” Broussard’s was dancing to Creole music before he was even born. His mother, Mary Jane Ardoin, and uncle, Bois Sec Ardoin, are Creole accordion legends and his uncle, Carlton Frank, is a world renown Creole violinist. You might recognize T Broussard's distinctive sound from promotional radio commercials and the Discovery Channel. Listen to his music here.

Dunedin's Mardi Gras Festival is free but VIP tickets are still available here.