Dancers, painters, jewelry makers, glass blowers, musicians and others will scatter around the lawn of the Old State Capitol this weekend. Baton Rouge’s biggest annual festival, FestforAll, will be held downtown Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. FestforAll has been a Baton Rouge staple since 1973, and this year features live music from Kermit Ruffins and the Barbecue Swingers, Eric Lindell and the Pine Leaf Boys. The Headhunters, formerly collaborators with Herbie Hancock, will also play their fusion of jazz and funk. There is even a band from the tiny African island of Mauritius, called Menwar playing at FestForAll. Located almost 600 miles east of Madagascar, Mauritius is most notable as home to the infamously-extinct Dodo bird. Menwar plays the traditional music of the island, called Sega, mixed with blues, funk, and African rhythms. The performing arts will also be present with theater, orchestral, and dance performances inside the Old State Capitol. The Cangelosi Dance Project, Of Moving Colors and the Playmakers of Baton Rouge are some of the organizations performing. “In addition to all the great music, we have almost 100 visual artists from over 15 states, so people can buy photography, paintings, pottery, jewelry, etc.,” said Katherine Sherer, Arts Council Deputy Director. Beatrix Bell will be one of the artists at the festival. She is a University alumna, and her unique jewelry is sold at various businesses around town. As a fulltime teacher in the public school system, jewelry making is her part-time passion and hobby. This is Bell’s third appearance at the festival. She said she enjoys the atmosphere and the music. “I just love selling jewelry and bumping into people I know,” she said. “I think it’s really fun.” Tracy LeBlanc, linguistics doctoral student, thinks downtown Baton Rouge has vastly improved over the years. She said the city’s efforts to create activities after business hours has drawn people to the area. “You can enjoy the weekends downtown now,” LeBlanc said. She cited programs such as Live After Five and Sundays in the Park as examples. As a Lafayette native, LeBlanc said she used to work at International Festival de Louisiane. Although the neighboring festival has a longer history, she said Baton Rouge is well on its way to a similar event. Leblanc said she is most excited about seeing the Pine Leaf Boys. The young Cajun and Creole band from southwest Louisiana has been featured in The New York Times and Rolling Stone magazine. “They’re young and vibrant, but play traditional sounding music,” she said. “It’s like a little bit of home.” Scherer said the family-friendly festival has a terrific line-up of musicians. “Hopefully the weather will hold out,” she said. “But we will be there regardless of rain.”
—-Contact Lauren Walck at [email protected]