The King and Queen of Rex will rule enter Spanish Plaza tonight to begin their rule over Carnival.
Both have deep ties to New Orleans.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that would happen up to the point that I was told that I had been chosen as this year's king," said Ludovido Feoli, Rex 2023.
The Tulane political scientist told WWL's Tommy Tucker that he became involved with Rex in the 1980s thanks to his then-girlfriend--now his wife--and her grandmother, who was a guest at 2525 St. Charles Avenue, the house at which the parade stops so Rex can offer his annual toast.
"That's the first perspective from which I watched the parade," Feoli said of that experience.
Queen Eveline Finlay Gomila is a New Orleans native whose father and brothers have served in the Rex Court. Gomila, a student at the University of Virgina, says she's been hard at work since learning last year that she'd be queen.
"Since then, it's just been busy preparing, designing the dress, and getting all the details in place, but it's been exciting to experience it all now instead of just thinking about it."
Feoli and Gomila will arrive at Spanish Plaza just after 5 p.m. to take ceremonial control of the Carnival and Mardi Gras celebrations. The ceremony will end with a fireworks show over the Mississippi River.
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