• Long journey home 
• Congrès focus shifts to the Lafayette area 
• Congres Mondial Acadien fais do-do

Ronnie Foret, singer for the Houma-based band  Dakota, sings to a small crowd that gathered outside  the Bayou Terrebonne Waterlife Museum last week  during the Congrès Mondial Acadien celebration.  Congrès festivities now move to Lafayette, and the  closing ceremony is scheduled for this coming Sunday. Photos by CINDY SKOP/THE COURIER.

Now that most of the Congrès Mondial Acadien events in Terrebonne Parish are over, local residents don't have to suffer through festival withdrawal for long. The closing Congrès ceremonies are scheduled for this coming Sunday at 7 p.m. in Lafayette. The opening ceremonies were Aug. 1 at the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center. The Louisiana Cajundome will be the setting for "Cri du Bayou!"  Loosely translated in English, it means "cry from the bayou."

                     No image better represents or is more associated with south
                     Louisiana than bayous. They are everywhere. They are mysterious,
                     a source of life and a mode of transportation, according to Valchuis.

                     "Bayous are very associated with Cajun/Acadian culture. That's
                     something they don't have in the North," Valchuis said.

                     Although bayous are the theme of the event, music will be the
                     backbone.

                     "Cri du Bayou" is actually going to be a musical showcase for
                     various bands from Louisiana and Canada.

                     Zachary Richard, a swamp-pop zydeco singer-songwriter, will be
                     the master of ceremonies.

                     Besides Richard's music, closing ceremony visitors will be able to
                     listen and dance to the sounds of Balfa Toujours with Alphonse
                     "Bois Sec" Ardoin, Beausoleil with Michael Doucet, Geno Delafose
                     and French Rockin' Boogie, Suroit, Steve Riley and the Mamou
                     Playboys, Bruce Daigrepont, Blou and and Feux Follets.

                     "The bands will perform about four songs each, maybe for 20
                     minutes. The setup is like a variety show so we can give the
                     audience different flavors," Valchuis said. There also will be two jam
                     sessions featuring accordion and fiddle players and a final jam
                     session at the end with all the bands.

                     The musicians will be playing in front of two large rear screens that
                     will display close-ups of the musicians on stage and video essays.

                     "The screens will show shots of the Atchafalayan Basin, footage of
                     older Cajun musicians and shots of the recent Congrès family
                     reunions," Valchuis said.

                     Valchuis said visitors can expect an elaborate light show as well.

                     Tickets for the show cost $20 and $27 and can be purchased at any
                     local Ticketmaster outlet.

                     For more information, Valchuis can be reached at (318) 981-4542.

                     Steven Ward is a staff writer at The Courier. He can be reached at
                     850-1151 or by e-mail at hdcnews@nytimes.