This season is dedicated in loving memory of Chris Stafford.
ABOUT THE CENTER:
Founded in 1973, the Center for Louisiana Studies is a cultural hub within the University of Louisiana at Lafayette's College of Liberal Arts. It's the university's oldest research center. The Center oversees the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press, publishing around 400 Louisiana-related books, and houses the Archives of Cajun and Creole Folklore, the largest collection of materials on South Louisiana's vernacular culture. To support the DRY BONES project, kindly direct philanthropic contributions through the UL Foundation, a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization backing university initiatives.
ABOUT ROOTS OF FIRE:
The Roots of Fire Project is a multimedia series dedicated to capturing and sharing stories of South Louisiana roots music, encompassing Cajun, Zydeco, and Creole traditions (among others). Through feature documentaries, short films, digital shorts, and live performance pieces, we aim to showcase the richness of Louisiana's French music heritage. Our ultimate goal is to foster an appreciation, both among existing fans and new listeners, to celebrate the diverse tapestry, explore the intersections where Cajun and Zydeco blend, diverge, and how Creole culture and indigenous influences have shaped these musical genres.
For more information about DRY BONES or to become a sponsor of the series, please contact
Joshua Caffery at josh.caffery@louisiana.edu
or the Roots of Fire team at info@rootsoffire.com
Premiering October 8, 2026
at Festival Acadiens et Créoles in Lafayette, Louisiana
What happens when a forgotten song gets pulled from the archives, handed to a living musician, and asked to dance again?
Dry Bones is an ongoing multimedia project that digs into Louisiana’s musical past and brings old songs, stories, sounds, and fragments back into the present.
A collaboration between the Center for Louisiana Studies, Lavoi Creative, the Roots of Fire project, and musician/host Chas Justus, Dry Bones invites contemporary Louisiana musicians to explore archival materials from the Center for Louisiana Studies, one of the major repositories for the traditional cultures, music, and folklore of South Louisiana.
Each episode follows musicians as they wander through the archives, uncover a song, story, recording, or mystery that sparks their imagination, and rework it into something new. Along the way, scholars, musicians, and cultural experts add context, color, and unexpected connections, helping viewers hear the material not as a museum piece, but as something still breathing.
The result is part music series, part cultural treasure hunt, and part creative resurrection. Each episode builds toward a studio performance of the reimagined work, where the past and present meet in real time.
And Dry Bones doesn’t stop on screen. Each season also grows into an album and a live performance, carrying these rediscovered songs out of the archives and back into the world.
FEATURED ARTISTS
This season of Dry Bones features a remarkable group of Louisiana musicians, each bringing their own sound, history, and imagination to the archival material.
This season features work from: CEDRIC WATSON & TIF LAMSON, STEVE RILEY & PETER SCHWARZ, KELLI JONES & MEGAN BROWN CONSTANTIN, THOR AHLGREN, JOEL SAVOY & LINZAY YOUNG, NOKOSEE FIELDS, LISA LEBLANC, THE WILLIAMS FAMILY, SABINE MCCALLA & TREY BOUDREAUX, FEUFOLLET AND FRIENDS.
THE TEAM
Dry Bones is a collaboration between the Center for Louisiana Studies, led by musician and scholar Dr. Joshua Caffery along with Chris Segura; filmmakers Jeremey Lavoi and Abby Berendt Lavoi of Lavoi Creative; host Chas Justus; and producer Chris Stafford, whose creative spirit and deep love of Louisiana music helped shape the project.
PURPOSE
At its heart, Dry Bones is about waking up the past.
The project aligns with the Center for Louisiana Studies’ mission to promote research, renewal, and creativity in Louisiana culture, especially the region’s vernacular heritage.
By revisiting overlooked songs and stories, Dry Bones aims to spark curiosity, deepen understanding, and invite new creative life into the traditional music and cultural memory of South Louisiana.