Mint Jubilee Returns to Derby Eve ... at the Louisville Palace
The Mint Jubilee is back in its rightful place on the list of celebrity-studded Derby Eve celebrations, complete with high-quality entertainment and food and drink on Louisville’s premier party night.
The Mint Jubilee will transform the Louisville Palace Theatre, requiring a special floor that will sit atop of the seats in the venerable theater. That configuration hasn’t been done at the Palace in 30 years. The May 6 party is sponsored by Brown-Forman’s Chambord brand, a black raspberry liqueur that is an ingredient in the new Mint Jubilee signature drink. It’s been created by Tim Laird, Brown-Forman’s drink guru.
The Comfy Cow, a local ice cream shop and event sponsor, has created a special bon-bon for the Jubilee.
The Mint Jubilee was created in 1996 by University of Louisville football All-Americans Matt Battaglia and Chris Thieneman, and Chris’ brother Tom Thieneman, as a fund-raiser for cancer research. The event took a brief hiatus in 2010, but is back in a big way for 2011. Organizers have created the Mint Jubilee Foundation, which will award grants to cancer-related charities after the event. The event has reportedly raised more than $1 million for cancer-related charities.
The founders licensed the brand to others for six years, but are back in control with this year’s event. The move to the historic Palace Theater marks another first-of-its-kind innovation for the Mint Jubilee.
Battaglia, an actor and Hollywood producer, is pulling out all the stops to produce a memorable event. He has called on event producers from New York and Los Angeles to help create the show, which will feature live music and dancing.
Each big Derby Eve Party keeps its celebrity list secret until the final days before Derby Week, but the Jubilee has already announced that sportscaster Bob Costas will be emceeing the event. And Battaglia is determined to cut no corners in his return as an organizer of the Jubilee.
In the previous 14 Mint Jubilees, the list of stars that made appearances ranged from actor Vince Vaughn to TV stars Wendy Malick and Marg Helgenberger to prominent athletes, including NFL quarterback Warren Moon. Jockeys, even those with Derby mounts, have been known to attend.
Posted on Mar 15, 2011 by Rick Redding
