Last Modified: Friday, October 28, 2011 2:41 PM

SPECIAL TO THE AMERICAN PRESS

There’s going to be a whole lot of “bangin’ and sangin’” — and recycling — going on at a special concert by Billy Jonas that will start the membership drive for the 20th season of McNeese State University’s Banners Cultural Series.
Jonas, a percussionist known for high energy family entertaining with an environmental message, will perform at 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, in the Civic Center’s Jean Lafitte room.
The audience will have a chance to do some bangin’ and sangin’ and will also have the chance to recycle shoes, cell phones and coats at the same time.
Jonas performs on homemade and recycled object instruments — 5-gallon water bottles, pots and pans, broom handles, buckets, garbage tins, carpet tube marimbas — as well as traditional American, Middle Eastern and African percussion instruments.
The recycling will be done by the Kiwanis Club of Lake Charles, Calcasieu Parish’s Soles4Souls program, the Oasis (formerly known as the Women’s Shelter) and the Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco Free Living.
The concert is part of an “early bird” membership drive for the Banners Cultural Series. Two free tickets will be given to everyone who joins the Banners Series before Nov. 4. Membership information is available online at www.banners.org or by calling the Banners office at 475-5123.
Individual tickets will also be available at $20 for adults and $5 for children. Tickets must be purchased by 5 p.m. Nov. 4. No tickets will be sold at the door.
Jonas uses his clear tenor voice to sing songs about the importance of taking care of the universe through recycling and other methods. The Banners Series will be putting concrete action to that message at the concert.
“Because he inspires his audience to care about our environment, we wanted to give people an immediate way to take action,” said Mary Richardson, director of the Banners Series. “We are delighted to join with other non-profit groups that have programs to recycle things we no longer need.”
Calcasieu Parish Police Jury’s Soles4Souls program will collect used shoes, the Oasis will collect used cell phones and the Kiwanis Club of Lake Charles will collect coats for its Coats for Kids program. “And they need coats for adults as well as children,” Richardson said.
Tobacco Free Living of Southwest Louisiana will present information about how to develop and encourage a healthy life style.
The concert is highly interactive and children will find themselves “bangin’ and sangin’” on stage with Jonas.
“You will want to gather your children, your grandchildren or your neighbors’ children for this concert,” Richardson said. “And I can promise from personal experience that grown-ups will enjoy his performance as much as the children.”
Favorite songs include “Some Houses,” which is about where we live and what our houses are made of;“Old St. Helens,” about the famous eruption of May 18, 1980, complete with dance steps; and “One,” a high energy tune with drumming by Jonas.
His music and videos have received numerous awards, including a First Place/Gold from the American Federation of Independent Musicians, a Parent’s Choice gold award and a New York Times “Best” listing.
Jonas’ concerts have been described as a “neo-tribal hootenanny,” or “a splendiferous gathering of young and old,” and he wants each performance to foster a sense of connection and community. But the most important goal of each performance, he says, is to have fun. He wants lots of laughter to accompany each song.
This concert was chosen to mark the 20th anniversary of the Banners Series because of the series’ mission of providing entertainment that is family centered, said Richardson.
“This season is particularly rich in family events,” she said, adding that each series also has events for evenings when adults want to leave the kids at home. “Our opening performance on Feb. 26 is ‘Bombay Bellywood,’” she said, “which is a spectacle of Indian-inspired belly dancing. So take the children to see Billy Jonas and our other family events … but perhaps leave them at home for that one.”
The Banners Series this year will run from Feb. 26 to May 12 and will include 22 events. Performances include all types of music, dance, lectures and exhibits.
A basic membership to the Banners Series is $150, which includes two tickets to all events, plus seating in a reserved area and invitations to members-only receptions. This and other membership packages are described on the website.