As people sought shelter under old oak trees, the Louisiana rain played percussion on the puddles.
Just above that familiar sound, the siren song of Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra lured sightseers out of the French Quarter and into Congo Square.
Their stage was soaked, but so was their audience. And the show must go on. Just ask Doretha Joyner.
"In New Orleans, the rain don't stop nothing," she said while working her booth, The King and Queen Shop. "The show goes on. The band plays on."
So, with a couple of bright ideas and a makeshift moving crew, the second annual Jazz in Congo Square festival didn't miss a beat.
Bands set up in the shadow of the Municipal Auditorium while organizers wrapped up cables and moved tents to give the crowd some cover.
"We're smart. We just figured it out," organizer Gina Recasner said when asked how they kept the music going. "Somebody wanted to give up, but I'm a go-getter. I'm very positive and I don't let the rain stop me."
Neither did anyone else.
Covered in ponchos, the crowd traded in their dancing shoes for rain boots and kept the party going. It wouldn't be the first time. Whether it's Jazz in Congo Square or Jazz Fest, rain seems to make New Orleans music even better.
Because dancing in the rain in New Orleans is a religious experience.
And since Congo Square is a sacred place, it only makes sense that mother nature would bless it with a little rain this weekend.
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