Energy shows up here all year—markets, art, performances, people doing their thing. But in May, it starts to stack. Weekends start to fill in. You can show up more than once and it doesn’t repeat itself.
Weekly Sundays Start Here: Lafayette Farmers Market
May – October
The Lafayette Farmers Market returns in May, and it doesn’t need much introduction at this point.
Local Lafayette residents and market organizers, Peter and Margo Wanberg, are there every week, along with their kids, moving between vendors, checking in, keeping things running. The market centers on growers and producers. The people selling are the ones growing, raising, or making the food. That consistency carries across the lineup, which this year has grown to 85 vendors.
Peter was clear about how they approach the Lafayette Farmers Market “what makes a market work is building relationships—between farmers, producers, and the community. That’s the whole thing. That’s why we do this.”
With a strong return from last year and a handful of new additions, the mix holds steady, with enough range to cover everything from produce and proteins to prepared foods and baked goods. What’s expanding is everything around it.
Restaurants and businesses aren’t just nearby, they’re part of the experience this season. You’ll see chefs walking the market, sourcing directly from vendors and turning those ingredients into something you’ll recognize later on a menu. And this year the market will have chef demos integrated into the mix, giving people a chance to interact with ingredients in real time.
Around them, other businesses are also building into the same market window—brunch specials, patio seating, yoga in The Yard, extended hours. Small shifts that sync up with the rhythm of the morning.
Come out, walk the market, grab what you need… then follow it a little further and see how Old Town Lafayette is building off of the Sunday energy this season.
Sundays, May 3rd – October 25th | 9am – 1pm
Public Rd between Cleveland St and Geneseo St
Then 2nd Fridays Show Up: Art Night Out
Second Fridays May – September
If Sunday finds the rhythm, Friday picks up the volume.
Art Night Out returns May 8, and it fills in fast. South Public Road closes down, and for a few hours, everything compresses into a few blocks—art, music, movement, people. What started as a way to activate Festival Plaza has grown with the town itself. As Mark Moffett, Art Night Out Event Coordinator, puts it, “we’re not trying to create something from the outside, we’re showcasing what’s already here.” You’ve got a rotating art market— around 50 booths—covering everything from 2D work and ceramics to wearables and accessories. It’s curated and special and it shows through the quality and diversity of the pieces.
Then the live music kicks in. Multicultural performances follow. And this year’s Tiny Stage adds programming from the Center for Musical Arts and Arts Hub that will include a mix of early evening sounds and later theater performances layered into the schedule. There’s also a strong music lineup this season, including bands like Dogtags who’ve come up through local partnerships like Youth on Record and are starting to make a name beyond Lafayette.
And then there is everything in between. Hands-on activities. Artists doing demos. Street performers. OTL businesses open and active, some spilling out into the street, others pulling people in. You can move through it however you want… early, late, quick pass or full evening. Like Mark said, “people don’t all experience it the same way and that’s what makes it work so well.”
Start at one end, make your way through, stop where it pulls you in and you’ll get a different version of Art Night Out every time.
Every second Friday May-Sept. | 5-9pm
S. Public Road between Emma and Cannon Streets
Musical Performances:
- May 8 – Brandywine and the Mighty Fines
- June 12 – DOGTAGS and Genevieve Libien
- July 10 – Cass Clayton Band
- Aug. 14 – Roka Hueka and Brittney Bridgewater
- Sept. 11 – Ritmo Cascabel
And Then It Goes Somewhere Else Entirely: LEAF (Lafayette Electronic Arts Festival)
May 25–30 | 10th Anniversary
LEAF runs May 25–30 this year, marking ten years in Lafayette. It’s a multi-day festival built around electronic music, media, and experimental art—pulling in artists from across the U.S. and beyond, alongside work shaped through long-standing relationships with local universities and creative communities.
That’s a big part of how it stays current. David Fodel, Director of LEAF, explains, “technology changes fast, but artists are always pushing on it in their own way—that’s what keeps it moving.”
It’s been here long enough to have a following, but it still catches people off guard—the scale, the range, and the fact that something like this is happening in Lafayette. The lineup reflects how artists are working right now. Technology shifts, tools evolve, and the work moves with it… sometimes pushing forward, sometimes pushing back, but always changing in real time. You see that range across the week.
One night might center on a solo vocal performance that is raw, physical, visceral and built on layered sound and feedback. Another leans more melodic, with piano, field recordings, and visuals that carry a more nostalgic feel. The contrast is intentional. And it doesn’t stay contained. Installations show up in places you already know (but not like this) such as the old Lafayette Florist building on Public Road that will be lit up and shifting throughout the month.
As David put it, “the more you dig, the more you find.”
You don’t need a full plan going in. Just pick a night. Step in. Stay for one thing or move between a few. Come back another day and it won’t feel the same. It may catch you off guard and it will definitely stay with you long after it’s over.
Leaf (Lafayette Electronic Arts Festival)
May 25-29
Cost: Free to $20 Tickets
A Line Up Like This Only Happens in Old Town Lafayette.
Start with Sunday, pick it back up on a Friday, and follow it through the end of the month of May (and beyond). Same place, different energy each time and plenty of reasons to come back again.