This past spring, the Dew Drop Inn in New Orleans hosted an original stage musical, Irma Meets Etta, which imagined what might have happened if R&B greats Irma Thomas and Etta James had crossed paths at the historic establishment.
Next month, a wide swath of the LaSalle Street joint's actual history will be revived with the world premiere at the 2026 New Orleans Film Festival of feature documentary The Dew Drop Inn: Resistance and Resilience. Written and directed by Michael Murphy, the film is set to open the festival October 22nd.
Along with the Inn's long history as a Negro Motorist Green Book destination during the Jim Crow days and original owner Frank Paina's battles with local authorities over his choice to allow Black and White musicians to perform together, the film also examines the recent and somewhat unlikely restoration of the locale. Following damage from Hurricane Katrina, and due to a lack of insurance coverage, the Inn sat vacant from 2005 to 2021, when an $11 million restoration project began under the tutelage of local developer Curtis Doucette Jr.
The Dew Drop Inn was reopened in March 2024 as a boutique hotel with 17 rooms, a restaurant and live performance space. From a report by the National Trust for Historical Preservation:
Each room is named for a person of significance to the storied establishment. There's the Patsy Vidalia room, named after the self-proclaimed “Toast of New Orleans,” who hosted an annual gay ball on Halloween and fostered a safe space for LGBTQ+ people at the Inn.
There's the Little Richard room, named for the innovator of rock 'n' roll. And of course, Frank Paina's Groove Room, which honors the unofficial “mayor of Lasalle Street,” the man who started it all. The Inn also pays tribute to its history through educational exhibits that grace the walls throughout the historic building.
Murphy has been making documentary features and TV series about New Orleans for decades. His 2021 feature documentary Irma: My Life in Music, about the aforementioned Irma Thomas, ran on PBS stations, while his more recent Rhythm Kitchen, a series commingling local chefs and musicians, won a 2025 Telly Award.
There is currently no listing on the Dew Drop Inn events calendar for an October 22nd post-premiere jam session and party. But chances are there will be some sort of celebration at the hotel following the arrival of Murphy's film.
Although Peter Farrelly's Oscar-winning 2018 film Green Book was shot on location in New Orleans and across southeast Louisiana, the Dew Drop Inn is not highlighted in any scenes.
No comments:
Post a Comment