LAFAYETTE, La. — On March 26, 1974, a very special concert took place.
Inside the Blackham Coliseum, more than 10,000 people gathered together to experience the music of Louisiana's roots in a brand new way.
What began as a display of culture for a group of French-speaking journalists visiting the area soon became something much bigger.
"As we were planning it, it occurred to us that the public might be interested, so we opened it up to the public," said Barry Ancelet, current director of the Festivals Acadiens et Créoles and one of the event programmers for the original 1974 concert. "Somewhere between 10- and 12-thousand people showed up, too, and standing room only in there, so something special happened."
People young and old listened as one band after another took the stage over three hours that night, playing all kinds of Cajun and Creole music.
"It was sort of the whole evolution of Cajun and Creole music up to that point. It was a ridiculously ambitious thing to do. We actually pulled it off because we didn't know we couldn't do it. We didn't know it couldn't be done," Ancelet said.
But they did do it. And the payoff?
"It felt like magic," he said. "I think people felt what I felt. Like, wow, you know? I mean, I was hoping that they would see the value of our own culture and celebrate ourselves, and that's what happened."
And the magic continues 50 years later at what is now known as Festivals Acadiens et Créoles.
"We got all this momentum going, we got to do it again, so we did it again but outside," Ancelet said. "So, it's evolved in all sorts of ways, gotten bigger and more comprehensive, more representative of what needs to happen."
This year's Festivals Acadiens et Créoles is taking place October 11 - 13 at Girard Park and will feature an extensive music line-up, a food festival, a crafts fair and more. To learn more about the festival, visit the website here.
