NATCHEZ — A crawfish countdown and entertaining tunes will give Miss-Lou residents summer fun this weekend.

Cloudy conditions are expected this weekend with a slight chance of rain.

Cathedral Crawfish Countdown

Cathedral will host its 31st annual crawfish countdown from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday at the school.

“We are expecting this to be a great event on Friday night,” said organizer Missy Rentfro. “We have had a great response so far, and we are expecting a large crowd to purchase tickets at the door.”

The crawfish countdown serves as Cathedral’s biggest fundraiser, which will help with tuition costs for students.

Rentfro said Paul Melancon of Cajun Cookin’ will cook 900 pounds of crawfish, corn, potatoes and sausage for the event.

Jambalaya and desserts will also be available, Rentfro said.

Guests will be able to purchase $100 tickets, which will admit two people to the event and an entry into the grand prize drawing for $5,000.

Second-chance insurance is available for $30. This allows an individual’s ticket, if drawn within the first 100 tickets, to be placed back in the drawing for a second chance at the grand prize.

Those who plan to take a swing at the grand prize do not have to be present to win.

The fundraiser will feature music by Speakeasy.

Tickets can be purchased via cash, check or credit card. Tickets can be taken to Cathedral or paid online at cathedralgreenwave.com.

The event is exclusive to adults ages 21 and over only.

Natchez Festival of Music

The Natchez Festival of Music will continue Friday with “Rodgers and Hammerstein Cabaret.”

The event will take place at 7 p.m. Friday at The Towers on 801 Myrtle Ave.

The event will feature music from Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II.

Their string of Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s began what is referred to as the golden age of music.

The event will feature several of their most famous Broadway shows.

Admission for the event is $100 and those who plan to attend must be ages 21 and over.

The Natchez Festival of Music will host its primary event Saturday known as “Best of the Mississippi Blues: An Evening of Robert Johnson.”

The event will take place at 7 p.m. Saturday at Margaret Martin Performing Arts Center on 64 Homochitto St.

The event will feature Vasti Jackson, a word-renowned guitarist, who will headline the festival in honor of the legendary Robert Johnson who was born in Mississippi as a poor black man who would grow up and learn to sing and play the guitar.

Admission is $20 and $10 for students K-12, college and active military with current ID.

The Natchez Festival of Music will wrap up its weekend of events with “That’s Amore” and “Rossini, Puccini and Martinis” Sunday.

“That’s Amore” will take place at 3 p.m. Sunday at Trinity Episcopal Church on 305 South Commerce St. and will feature Harmonie Universelle.

“That’s Amore” refers to two variants on common instruments of the day, the flauto d’amore and the viola d’amore.

These unusual tone colors were prized for their sweetness and intimacy, hence their names, said harpsichordist Daniel Pyle.

“Rossini, Puccini and Martinis” will take place at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Historic Natchez Foundation.

Festival of music performers will gather at Historic Natchez Foundation for the second of two “Martini” evenings of live entertainment during this season.

Admission is free and a cash bar will be available.

Historic Natchez Foundation is located on 108 S. Commerce St.

National Day of Prayer

Morning prayer gathering will take place from 7 to 7:30 a.m. today at the Natchez Convention Center flagpole.

Prayer will continue at noon until 1 p.m. at the City Hall steps on Pearl Street.

In the event of rain, gathering will be in the City Council Chambers.

National Association of Letter Carriers

Letter carriers across the country will be collecting food for families in need Saturday.

Collect and bag non-perishable food items and place by mailbox for letter carrier to deliver to a local food bank or pantry.

Friday Forum

The Friday Forum will take place at 8 a.m. Friday at the Natchez Coffee Company on Franklin Street. Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Natchez will discuss kid’s college summer activities and Miss-Lou workforce ready communities.