Terrance Simien, Zydeco Experience kick off SMU’s Page Series Sept. 16

WINONA, Minn. — The 25th season of the Saint Mary’s University Page Series will kick off with the sweet southern sounds of Louisiana with Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience Friday, Sept. 16, at Saint Mary’s University.

The event, set to take the stage at 7:30 p.m., will be held in Page Theatre, located in the SMU Performance Center.

Incorporating his hypnotic blend of Zydeco, New Orleans funk, and reggae-flavored Afro-Caribbean sound, Terrance Simien aims to propel you out of your seat and have you dancing in the aisles.

For more than two decades the Grammy-award winning artist, an eighth-generation Louisiana Creole, has been shattering the myths about what his indigenous Creole Zydeco music is and is not. Leading his Zydeco Experience Band, Simien has become one of the most respected and internationally recognized touring and recording artists in roots music today.

He has performed over 5,000 concerts, toured to over 40 countries and reached at least a million people during his eventful 25-year career. In December of 2009, Disney Pictures released a Pixar animated film, “The Princess & The Frog,” set in New Orleans, which was scored by Randy Newman and features the music of Simien, Terence Blanchard and Dr. John.

Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors and students and are available online at www.pagetheatre.org or call the box office, (507) 457-1715, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. $10 student rush tickets may be available for some events 20 minutes before curtain.

Saint Mary’s is a fiscal year 2011 recipient of an Institutional Presenter Support grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is funded, in part, by the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund as appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov.4, 2008.