Festivals Acadiens et Créoles 2012 bigger than ever

    Festivals Acadiens et Créoles, which pays tribute to Acadiana’s Cajun and zydeco music, grows every year, with new events both at the festival site and throughout Lafayette.
     This year’s fete honors Louisiana’s bicentennial celebration of its statehood, one of the 200th anniversary’s kick-off events statewide. Among the many stages of live music at Festivals Acadiens et Créoles will be the Louisiana Bicentennial Stage, hosting a wide variety of talent.
    The festival takes place Oct. 12-14, 2012, at Lafayette’s Girard Park and is actually a collection of festivals. The three days of fun includes the Festival de Musique/Music Festival, the Bayou Food Festival, the Louisiana Craft Fair, La Place des Petits for the kids, Culture Sur La Table/Culture on the Table workshops on Cajun and Creole cooking and Louisiana Folk Roots, which features jam sessions and interviews with Cajun and zydeco legends.
    This year’s poster by artist Megan Barra is a good example of the interconnectivity of Acadiana’s culture, a fabric tree with intersecting threads showcasing the influences of many individuals on Cajun and Creole-zydeco music. The trunk of the tree represents the collective festivals with James Domingue, organizer of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana, watering its growth. Domingue is this year’s honoree for his work keeping French alive in South Louisiana.
    “It’s been referred to as our family tree,” Organizer Patrick Mould explained of the poster.
    Bands appearing include Balfa Toujours, Jo-El Sonier, Feufollet, the Savoy Family Band, Lil’ Band o’ Gold, Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie, Wayne Toups, Cedric Watson, Soul Express Brass Band, Pine Leaf Boys and Michael Doucet with Mitch Reed, among many more. In addition there will be jam sessions led by accomplished musicians.
    To view a full schedule of bands, food and craft vendors and more, plus activities happening in town outside the festival grounds, visit http://festivalsacadiensetcreoles.com.