Night of Louisiana's future up in air after attendance decline, funding issues
Night of Louisiana is held on Jan. 23 in Finch Field House.
A Mount Pleasant staple since the 1990s, the annual Night of Louisiana event did not take place in 2018 due to attendance and financial issues, event organizers said.
The event's unique theme and broad audience appeal hasn't been able to prevent attendance numbers from dropping, said Director of University Events Misheaila Neil.
Due to this decline and the lack of financial support, University Events will not host the Night of Louisiana this year. The event traditionally takes place in January.
The reason for declining numbers isn't certain, but Neil believes the weather and time of year has something to do with it, she said.
The annual Night of Louisiana began in the '90s as a night where Mount Pleasant community members of all ages would brave the unpredictable Michigan weather to dress in their Mardi Gras best, listen to live bands, drink, dance and feast on Cajun food.
To reduce costs, the 2017 event changed venues from Finch Fieldhouse to the John G. Kulhavi Event Center Atrium, but that did little to help, Neil said.
"Last year we did not break even (for the event)," she said.
University Events staff are now taking time to reassess the Louisiana-themed event.
During the event's conception, former director of University Events Bob Ebner played a role in helping create the festival.
Central Michigan Life sought comment from Ebner for this story. He did not respond.
There are a few variables event coordinators have issues with when it comes to the Night of Louisiana events, including food. Having traditional and authentic Cajun and Creole food plays a role in aiding the New Orleans vibe, but not having an idea on attendance numbers makes planning food quantity much harder.
Along with the food, part of the event centralizes around live music and dancing, but getting Grammy winning bands comes at a price. Some bands would travel from Michigan, but a majority came all the way from Louisiana, Neil said.
Without financial support, it would be difficult to pay for all the travel and work the bands had to do, she said.
"The bands we brought were really lovely and just wonderful, but costly. They were a good deal, and they were doing their very best, but you have to do all the flights, and so it's hard to keep that cost down," Neil said. "Even if they are being very reasonable, which they were."
The Night of Louisiana was sponsored by PBS and Wheatland Music Organization. For several years WCMU would broadcast recordings of the event.
Former WCMU director John Sheffler hosted these broadcasts on his program "Our Front Porch" — a radio series that featured various styles of music, including the types routinely performed at the Night of Louisiana.
"University Events transformed that Finch Fieldhouse into a place that people wanted to go to for dancing, for music, for food (and) for spirits," Sheffler said.
Following the holiday season, Sheffler believed the time of year for the event was best.
"After the holidays, everybody is running everywhere seeing family and enjoying themselves and then there's nothing," he said. "This event came about the right time that everyone had been able to collect themselves after their family gatherings, and kind of burrow in and hibernate for a couple of weeks, then come out and enjoy themselves."
It wasn't up until the last few years that WCMU ended broadcasting recordings of the event. When Sheffler knew he was going to retire soon, he began to phase out his program "Our Front Porch". Without that show, there wasn't a place for the recordings to air, he said.
Besides the 2017 Night of Louisiana — the 26th annual event — Sheffler went to NOLA every time it took place and said he would like to return.
The future for the event is uncertain, Neil said, but hopes it will return.
"My hope is in the future that there will be a new interest and financial support for this event from campus and partners," she said.
