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UPCOMING EVENTS 2024

APRIL

  • Bilingual Concert - Chansons de tradition orale francophone : de la Bretagne à la Louisiane. Tuesday, April 30th, 6 - 8 p.m., the Roy House. Concert gratuit / Free Concert. Special farewell performance by musician, educator and researcher Jeanne Lemoine. In these past few months, Breton accordionist and singer Jeanne Lemoine has been seen both in the Center's archives and playing at jams all across Acadiana. She plays for dances and concerts, as a solo artist, and in the bands Horvâ, Lemoine/Couchoux, Paul Capic & Mama Zurka, and Youpë. She also teaches diatonic accordion and Breton music. Hailing from the northeastern part of Britanny, and has been dancing and singing traditional music since she was seven years old.
    Accordéoniste et chanteuse, elle joue lors de bals ou concerts, en solo ou en groupe (Horvâ, Lemoine/Couchoux, Paul Capic & Mama Zurka, Youpë) et enseigne actuellement à l'école des Menhirs au Sel-de-Bretagne.Originaire du nord de l'Ille-et-Vilaine, elle évolue depuis petite dans différents milieux de la culture orale bretonne : elle a appris et et elle est imprégnée de la musique, de la danse et du chant traditionnels au sein d'associations ou lors de bals. 
  • In Your Own Backyard Workshop - Presentations on the History of Tabasco Sauce with Shane K. Bernard, Ph.D. and Breaking Into a Hot Market with Troy Primo of Primo's Peppers. Thursday, April 11th, 6-8 p.m., The Roy House. These special guests are experts come from different ends of the spectrum of pepper sauce expertise. They'll comment on Tabasco history, pepper cultivation, marketing, and the psychology of "pepper heads". Shane Bernard is a local historian, and was one of the Center for Louisiana Studies fellows. He is the Historian & Curator to McIlhenny Company and its sister organization, Avery Island, Inc. Dr. Bernard will present the story of Tabasco sauce, explaining the origins of the famous sauce and exploring the McIlhenny family's thirst for adventure. Troy Primo's presentation focuses on "nouveau pepper people," the thrill of creating new pepper cultivars, and breaking into the highly competitive market of hot sauces today. This is an interactive workshop that is open to the public, and a call to all backyard pepper growers and hot sauce cooks in the area. Bring your peppers or your sauces for people to try. You might be sitting on the hottest new condiment in Cajun cuisine.
  • Lecture with Dr. Clint Bruce - Rethinking Acadian Identities - Yes, Plural! - Through Transnational Approaches. Thursday, April 4th, 6 -8 p.m., The Roy House. Join Center for Louisiana Studies Fellow Dr. Clint Bruce for a lecture on new approaches to Acadian Studies. Despite its diversity on many fronts, Acadian collectivity – across Canada and in Louisiana – is united by its shared historic memory of le Grand Dérangement. British authorities’ violent dispersal of the Acadian people created a diaspora that is transregional, transnational, and circum-Atlantic. This reality continues to shape the evolution of Acadian societies and to condition their relationships with the outside world. 

MARCH

  • The Burdin Professorship Lecture with Raymond Arsenault, "The End of the Long, Hot, Summer". Thursday, March 7th, 5 -7 p.m., Student Union room 116. Co-founder of the Florida Studies Program at the University of South Florida, Dr. Arsenault is a renowned civil rights historian. For the Burdin Professorship lecture, Dr. Arsenault will revisit his 1985 essay “The End of the Long, Hot Summer: the Air Conditioner and Southern Culture.” This talk focuses on the intersection of climate vulnerability and race in the economic development of the South. The intent of the Burdin Professorship is to enhance the University's leadership role in promoting the knowledge of Louisiana's historical and cultural heritage.The Burdin Professorship, held by Dr. Liz Skilton through 2024, is awarded to enhance campus and community dialogue on topics or issues in Louisiana studies.
  • Bilingual Book Talk and Writing Workshop with Melissa Bonin / Causerie et atelier de poésie avec Melissa Bonin. Tuesday, March 19th, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m., The Roy House. Venez fêter le mois de la francophonie et le mois de l’histoire des femmes. Come celebrate Francophone heritage and Women’s history month at our special event featuring Mélissa Bonin’s new book of poetry and paintings. The Center for Louisiana Studies and UL Press strive to support Francophone women writers and artists in Louisiana. We are honored to host our friend Mélissa in sharing her creative process. The evening will start with readings, presentations, and questions with Mélissa. Join us for an evening of encouragement for other creatives – not just women, and not just French speakers – to share our poems, art, processes, and ideas.

FEBRUARY

  • In Your Own Backyard Workshop - South Louisiana Lenten Traditions. Thursday, February 22nd, 6 - 8 p.m., The Roy House. Most of us in South Louisiana could name a dozen Mardi Gras customs, but for the season that follows Carnival, fewer traditions readily come to mind. Jolene Adam is la capitaine of la table chantante, a local gathering of French speakers and learners who sing Louisiana French music. Having given countless workshops on Lenten a cappella singing, and having created a song book for her singing French table, Jolene provides a thorough presentation of Lenten social customs from the era prior to the technology boom. Don't be shy about your French. We're all here to learn!
    Baking pies on Good Friday is a regional custom that has maintained its popularity, especially in Scott and Catahoula. We've invited some friends who can tell us about this custom, but we want your help in sharing knowledge about the tradition. If you've ever made Good Friday pies, come tell us about it. Bring a pie and share a recipe. 

JANUARY

  • Lecture - Some Design Elements for Language Vitality, a discussion with Hali Dardar. Thursday, January 18th, 6-8 p.m., The Roy House. The 60-minute discussion, “Some Design Elements for Language Vitality,” will focus on common elements which communities encounter within language revitalization and reclamation work. The discussion will equip speakers, learners, language program designers, administrators, and supportive communities to name and discuss challenges within the field. The talk will serve as a starting point, and provide further readings and case studies around the elements of collaboration, education formats, community trauma, acquisition domains, and intangible cultural heritage. Dardar is a member of the United Houma Nation and the Project Manager for Language Vitality Initiatives and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.
  • In Your Own Backyard Workshop - Elements of South Louisiana Mardi Gras Songs with Barry Ancelet. Thursday, Janauary 25th, 6-8 p.m., The Roy House. This workshop focuses on the meanings behind several traditional Courir de Mardi Gras songs. Anyone who has run Mardi Gras knows that you cannot chase a chicken, let alone join a Mardi Gras run unless you first learn the community Mardi Gras song. Come learn from Dr. Ancelet and many of South Louisiana's most traditional Mardi Gras runners about the origins and importance of the French chants we associate with rural Carnival celebrations. You'll leave this workshop with several songs in your heart and a renewed thirst for old fashioned revelry. 

 

2023

DECEMBER

  • UL Press Bookshop sale.
  • Online sales: December 4 - 8, free shipping ; December 8 - 15, free shipping + 25% off everything.
  • In our Bookshop: Faculty, staff, and students' sale in the UL Press Bookshop – 40% ; December 4th - 14th. 
  • In our Bookshop: 30% off sale for everyone ; December 4th - 14th.

NOVEMBER

  • Lecture - Atakapa-Ishak Language and Culture: An Introduction by Jeffrey U. Darensbourg. Thursday, November 9th, 6-8 p.m., The Roy House. Center for Louisiana Studies Fellow Dr. Darensbourg will give a talk on a group whose history predates European contact in the area that is now Lafayette. This is a free lecture, and is open to the public. Join us in learning about the Ishak people, or share your Atakapa-Ishak heritage to honor this culture which lives on in Southwest Louisiana.
  • In Your Own Backyard Workshop - The Sportsman's Paradise in a Changing Environment. Thursday, November 16th, 6-8 p.m., The Roy House. Historian Jacob Gautreaux moderates discussions with tradition bearers and renowned sportsmen Dale Bordelon and Keith Dupuy. This event is part of the Culture and Climate Conversations Series, in partnership with the Bayou Culture Collaborative. Each hailing from Avoyelles Parish, Bordelon and Dupuy will address protecting wildlife and preserving duck hunting and boating traditions in increasingly stressed environments. An evening of pirogue restoration and duck call demonstrations, hot jambalaya, and a history of Louisiana sportsmanship is the perfect beginning to duck season. The event is free and open to the public.
  • Acadie / Acadiana Student Exchange Presentation - « Collection Acadie-Acadiana » by Esteban Quispe. Tuesday, November 28th, 4 - 5 p.m., The Roy House. Thanks to the generosity of a Louisiana donor family, the Acadie / Acadiana Student Exchange Program created a transnational, student-led project between the Center for Louisiana Studies and the Centre d'études acadiennes at the University of Moncton in New Brunswick. Graduate student in French and Francophone Studies, Esteban Quispe completed a project exhibiting a repertoire of French songs from oral tradition which exist simultaneously in both Acadie (the Maritimes of Canada) and French Louisiana. The project showcases categorized and documented materials by which researchers may investigate possible connections between the French song repertoires of both these regions. Esteban will also perform selected songs from the collection. 

 

OCTOBER

  • Screening of Les Blank's film Hot Pepper (1973) - Wednesday October 11th, 6-8 p.m., Clifton Chenier Center, 220 W. Willow Street. In honor of Clifton Chenier's spotlight at this year's Festivals Acadiens et Créoles, the Center for Louisiana Studies presents a screening of Les Blank's 1973 documentary film about the King of Zydeco. Join us for this free cinematic look at Clifton's early career. There will be a discussion following the film. Those who remember Clifton and his performances are especially welcome to contribute.
  • Book Launch - Josette & Friends Cook a Gumbo by Elista Istre. Thursday, October 12th, 6-8 p.m. the Roy House. Join us on National Gumbo Day to celebrate the release of UL Press's newest children's book by Creole cultural expert Elista Istre. This event is the perfect way for kids to kick off celebrating Acadian and Creole heritage before Festivals Acadiens et Créoles. Children are welcome to bring their favorite grown-ups for an interactive reading, coloring and activities, and of course a bowl of gumbo.
  • Atelier Stage - Festivals Acadiens et Créoles - October 14th and 15th, Girard Park. The Center for Louisiana Studies and Lafayette Parish Bicentennial present musical performances and panel discussions on Lafayette's musical history, the stories behind our city's famous places and their future, and an intimate look at Acadian and Creole musicians' processes and greatest inspirations.
  • Louisiana Cane Syrup Heritage Expo - In Your Own Backyard on the road! - October 28th, downtown Franklin, Louisiana. Vintage farm gear, music, syrup cooked on site, demonstrations and panel discussions on all things related to Cane Syrup heritage.

SEPTEMBER 

  • In Your Own Backyard Workshop Series - Cajun Harmonica with Jerry Devillier and Chad Huval. September 14th, 6 - 8 p.m., the Roy House. This Fall, we are reviving the In Your Own Backyard free monthly workshop series. This workshop will be our first in a decade, with the original series lasting from 2009-2013 and consisting of 60 installments. Don’t miss this evening of music, culture, and storytelling.
  • Presentation - Greg Guirard: Capturing Life inside the Atchafalaya Basin. September 18th, 3 p.m., the Roy House. Emily LeBlanc, the 2022-2023 recipient of the Martin Family Undergraduate Research Assistantship presents an ARCGIS story map that displays the various creative mediums Greg Guirard used throughout his life as an Atchafalaya Basin resident. Greg Guirard’s interesting perspective touches on the amazing sense of community and culture in the Basin. Guirard’s work continues to educate readers and spread awareness for the preservation of the Atchafalaya Basin.
  • Book Launch - Settling St. Malo by Randy Gonzales. September 21st, 6 - 8 p.m., the Roy House. Settling St. Malo brings readers back to a time when Louisiana had the largest Filipino population in the United States — when Filipinos fished out of St. Malo, dried shrimp on Barataria Bay, and designed Mardi Gras floats in New Orleans. A native New Orleanian of Filipino descent, Randy Gonzales is a poet, writer, and community historian who researches and shares the stories of Filipino Louisiana.   
  • Book Talk / Conférence - L'accoucheuse de Scott's Bay, traduction de Sonya Malaborza. September 28th, 4 p.m., the Roy House. (The talk will be in French.) Sonya Malaborza porte plusieurs chapeaux sur la scène littéraire au Canada Atlantique. À titre de traductrice, on lui doit notamment L’accoucheuse de Scots Bay d’Ami McKay (Prise de parole, 2020), finaliste aux Prix littéraires du gouverneur général. Son premier livre, Prendre racine, vient tout juste de paraître chez Prise de parole. Il y a de ces livres qui permettent à leur traducteur de cibler un public précis en travaillant. The Birth House d’Ami McKay est de ceux-là. Sonya Malaborza, qui a signé la version française du roman en s’adressant avant tout à un lectorat acadien, nous montrera un peu comment The Birth House est devenu L’accoucheuse de Scots Bay et nous expliquera pourquoi elle a tenu à procéder comme elle l’a fait.        
  • Errances Nord / Sud, Rendez-vous littéraire - September 29th, 1:30 p.m. the Roy House. Venez nombreux pour écouter un magnifique ensemble de poètes louisianais et canadiens qui partageront des textes autour du thèmes "Errances Nord/Sud". Tout ça dans les nouveaux locaux sublimes du Centre d'études louisianaises.Ce sera aussi l’occasion de fêter la sortie du dernier numéro de Feux Follets : Été. Avec Sonya Malaborza de Moncton (qui sera de passage à Lafayette), Jean Arceneaux, Gaëtan Brulotte, Darrell Bourque, Ashlee Michot, Deborah Clifton, Brenda Mounier, Rachel Doherty, Jonathan Mayers, Mélissa Bonin, Esteban Quispe, Colby LeJeune, David Cheramie et Nathan Rabalais.