Randy French
New Orleans, LA
Our Mumming traditions are woven into the fabric of Celtic culture and if you look for it you will find in a number of places all over the world. In Ireland you can still find the Christmas Mummers and the Boys Who Hunt the Wren. Then there are the Biddie Men and The Strawboys who tie the knots, or the May Boys. Here we have the Rhymers and the Mardi Gras of Acadiana. Where ever you find Celtic roots you will find something of the Mumming tradition.
Rhyming and “mumming” are types of Irish folk drama that date back hundreds and possibly thousands of years. They involve small troupes of masked performers who travel from house to house during the darkest days of winter to perform short skits for luck and prosperity. Randy French first learned of mumming when he saw the Armagh Rhymers from Northen Ireland on one of theor rare US tours. He remained in close contact with the Rhymers, and the first time he ever worked with the Rhymers was at CelticFest many years ago. Since then, Randy has mummed with them in Dallas, Savanna, Milwaukee, Dublin, Pontchatoula, and New Orleans. (Randy French is the one with the horse's head.)