Doors at 7:30 pm / Dance lesson with Cheryl McBride at 8:00 pm / Show at 8:30 pm

Tickets are $12 Advance / $15 Day of Show

Longtime favorite Cajun-zydeco band Gator Nation keeps the Ashkenaz dance floor bouncing with full-tilt party music. The group’s mostly original songs are powered by its own gumbo of dance rhythms: a blend of Louisiana Cajun and zydeco, a touch of New Orleans funk, and, as the band proclaims, “a beat that bites.” Gator Nation is a culturally and stylistically mixed crew, with guitarist Randy Quan, bassist Tim Haggerty, lead singer and washboard player Willard Blackwell, drummer Bobby “G” Gaviola, accordion player Dennis Hadley, and Australia native David Scott on saxophone, pennywhistle, and percussion.

The band has been Gator Nation for four years, but was started in 1988 as Gator Beat, changing its name after the passing of founder Richie Domingue in 2005, while honoring his legacy. The group explains: “Looking back at the amazing 25-year history of Gator Beat and its founder Richie Domingue, we are grateful to recognize that we have created among ourselves and our many fans that which was, in the beginning, his dream... a community. A community in which people of all walks of life meet on the common ground of music. The Beat goes on!”