June 7, 2005

Chamber’s ‘Boogie on the Bayou’ brings Bourbon Street festivity downtown

By Jennifer Robertson
Staff Writer

This year, the chamber made several small changes enabling the festival to “step up a couple of levels,” said Deal. California Artists, which produces a higher quality craft, did all of the arts and crafts for this year’s festival.

Once a quiet, rural town known for its abundant prune orchards, Camp-bell is now a thriving town that attracts people from all over the Bay Area with its unique boutiques, restaurants, friendly atmosphere and the numerous festivals held each year.

In May nearly 35,000 people attended “Boogie on the Bayou,” a Cajun festival sponsored by the Campbell Chamber of Com-merce.

“[The turnout] could have been better,” said Betty Deal, executive director of the Campbell Chamber of Commerce, “but it was steady both days.” Yet the turnout is still rather impressive, particularly when one considers that Campbell’s total population is only about 38,000.

Everyone at the festival enjoyed the liveliness of Mardi Gras, which this year had a family feel.

Campbell Avenue became a more wholesome version of Bourbon Street, offering high-quality arts and crafts booths and individual street performers. While listening to live jazz performances, people danced and ate authentic Cajun food. Popular food items included Pigs in a Sac (grilled pork in Cajun spices with onions in a pita), “dirty rice,” crab cakes, shrimp-stuffed artichokes, seafood gumbo, blackened shrimp, crawfish etouffee and jambalaya.

Laura Jaeger, owner of The Toastshop, was one of the many merchants who did well as a result of the festival.

The flamboyant, colorful “strutter’s” parade, in which all are invited to participate, added a special flair to the festival.

Lorraine Emery, a member of the Country Women’s Club, loves strutting her stuff in the parade. She and her friend were perhaps the most colorfully-dressed participants. “If we don’t get out there, there won’t be anybody else who’s flamboyant enough,” said the 74-year-old.

Years ago, “Boogie on the Bayou” was called the “Prune Festival,” an appropriate theme when one considers Campbell’s past. But in order to prevent being forced to re-name the event the “Dried Plum Festival,” the chamber decided on a completely different theme.

The organization chose a Cajun theme because it sounds like fun, and would provide entertainment in the form of good food and music. “The ‘Dried Plum Festival’ would not have gone over well,” said Deal. “Campbell was known for prunes, not dried plums.”

The festival featured many individual street performers. Ray, age 3 ½, and his brother Zak, 15 months, watch a Country Western performer in front of Orchard Valley Coffee. Other street entertainment included a steel drums artist and a balloon contortionist.

But the chamber’s main purpose is to promote the businesses of downtown Campbell, which is why the festivals are so important. The downtown merchants reported that they did well at this year’s festival, which means it was a success.

Bringing people downtown “keeps the businesses alive and well,” said Deal. “If you lose the businesses, there goes your town.”

In addition to being practical, perhaps the change from the “Prune Festival” to “Boogie on the Bayou,” symbolizes Campbell’s transition from an agricultural town to the lively, diverse city it is today.