Festival opens Saturday with boucherie, second line parade

The second edition of the Experience Louisiana Festival begins at 7 a.m. Saturday with a traditional Cajun boucherie, but officially opens with a New Orleans-style second line parade.
Among those leading the parade at 9:45 a.m. will be the Hacienda Brass Band, of New Orleans, Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, Miss Louisiana Bethany Trahan, festival partners and anybody who wants join the parade.
The parade is to assemble at the Artist Village at 9:30 a.m. and proceed to the main stage for an opening ceremony for the festival to be held Saturday and Sunday on the LSUE campus adjacent to the Community Education Building.
LSUE Chancellor Kimberly Russell is to welcome Nungesser who is to speak following by Celeste Gomez, St Landry Parish Tourism Commission executive director.
In conjunction with the parade, participants are asked to bring decorated umbrellas. There will be a prize for the best adult-decorated umbrella and child-decorated umbrella.
The boucherie is changing this year with Toby Rodriguez owner of Lache Pas Boucherie & Market, of Henderson, being the butcher.
The butchered meat will be distributed to the following booths:
— Fraisseurs, Ricky Leger Jr., Eunice Superette Booth.
— Head cheese, Eunice Superette Booth.
— Two roasts made into fresh sausage, Eunice Superette Booth.
— Two roasts and backbone cooked into backbone stew, CFMA Food Booth.
— Cracklins, Daniel Thomas Food Booth.
The big change for this year’s festival is a $5 parking fee, which organizers said will help festival finances and provide a head count.
The festival also becomes home for the “Rendez-vous des Cajuns” Cajun Music Radio & TV Show from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the main stage. The show is usually held at the Liberty Theatre.
Geno Delafose and French Rockin Boogie are to perform.
At 9 a.m., the Savoy Music Center’s Saturday morning jam session will be at the festival.
The festival continues until 7:30 p.m.
On Sunday, the festival officially reopens at 10:30 a.m. and closes at 4 p.m.
A special event will be a Latin Mass conducted by the Rev. Travis Arabie of St. Anthony Padua Catholic Church near the clock in the LSUE Quadrangle.