Acadiana’s French immersion students are about to make a new animated friend. But he’s an old pal for many of their parents.
Christine Baniewicz
Christine Baniewicz is a queer writer, educator and theater artist from Louisiana, with bylines at The Rumpus, TruthOut and Southerly Magazine. She received her M.F.A. in nonfiction from the Creative Writing Workshop at the University of New Orleans. She currently lives in upstate New York.
Long scarce, Black therapists counsel Lafayette through the division and disconnection of the Covid era
The pandemic has worsened mental health vulnerabilities by exacerbating pre-existing racial inequities in healthcare. Black therapists are stepping in to close the gap.
8 min read
Acadiana Symphony Orchestra goes virtual in a season of chaos and uncertainty — for its musicians
This season’s REVIVAL theme is a musical balm for a community in pain and a much-needed effort to keep the symphony’s players playing.
8 min read
Living through Covid in Louisiana French
In interviews with Cajun elders, UL archivists explore the experience and expression of the pandemic in Louisiana French.
8 min read
Will Lafayette’s bike spike stick around after coronavirus?
Lafayette’s bike community is cautiously optimistic a recent surge in riders could lead to a more permanent growth in bike culture.
8 min read
With haircuts coming back, Lafayette’s salons are getting some bold styling requests
Since the coronavirus pandemic told hold here in March, temporarily shuttering The Loft, along with all other beauty salons in town, stylists have received an inordinate number of requests from quarantined clients to help make their longest-held hair dreams come true.
6 min read
Does being the ‘happiest city’ give Lafayette the edge on coronavirus?
According to the prior findings of social scientists, Lafayette — once famously declared the “happiest city in America” — may be uniquely positioned to come out of all this with its social and emotional landscape intact.
8 min read
More victims, more severe cases, of domestic abuse during coronavirus lockdown
Acadiana women are turning to shelters for help in higher numbers and, in many cases, showing up with more serious injuries, counselors and shelter operators say.
6 min read
Coronavirus has Lafayette’s restaurant workers living on the fly
In better times, many servers and bartenders are forced to cut costs around healthcare, food, or rent. Setting aside money for savings is not often feasible.
8 min read
Hard Facts, True Stories, Real Talk
The sky settled down into an early May gradient of twilight colors over the statue of Confederate General Alfred Mouton, his arms crossed over his white stone chest. Across the street, crammed standing-room-only inside of The Hive’s black box theatre space, more than 50 people hushed as Dr. Rick Swanson took the stage. Swanson unfurled tables and charts, photos and […]
3 min read
Lost Boys And Strong Girls
A musical based on a novel co-written by humorist Dave Barry, Peter and the Starcatcher is fast-paced and funny, following the orphan Peter Pan before he becomes the flying, mischievous lost boy. But Starcatcher also introduces a new character to the Pan canon, the empowering female lead, Molly — Wendy’s precocious, brainy predecessor. The show makes its Lafayette debut in […]
2 min read
What You’ve Left Behind
CAST: Derek Joseph: 28, black, poetry student at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, N.Y. Christine Baniewicz: 28, white, nonfiction student at UNO in New Orleans, La. SETTING: Your own mind. Also, later, Artmosphere. I. Derek enters your mind. He’s short, somewhere in the mid-5-foot range, with a distinctively powerful and peculiar presence, a mysteriously hypnotizing quality about him. DEREK: I […]
9 min read