The Run Off
2023
New Brunswick, NJ
The Run Off is a multi-platform public art project blending site-specific performance, film, and community participation to spotlight the impact of urban stormwater runoff. Audiences are swept into a flash mob–style processional through city streets and a riverside performance that transforms civic space into a stage for environmental storytelling.
Audience Experience
The Run Off invites audiences into a layered, site-specific exploration of water, infrastructure, and community. The work begins with a flash mob–style processional—a moving river of over 200 dancers, students, and community members—flowing through city streets and converging on the banks of the Raritan River. From there, viewers witness a full-scale performance where professional dancers animate the landscape, making visible the environmental and cultural impact of stormwater runoff.
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A companion film offers an intimate, cinematic meditation on flood-prone sites across New Jersey, deepening the audience’s connection to place and ecological urgency. Whether experienced as a processional, performance, or screening, The Run Off dissolves the boundary between spectator and participant, transforming civic space into a stage and positioning the dancing body as a vessel for environmental storytelling.
Run Off- Companion Film
Visual and Material Elements
Duration & Structure
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Flash Mob/Processional: ~20–30 minutes (teachable in 2–4 hours of rehearsal)
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Full-Scale Performance: ~50–60 minutes (optional, site-adaptable)
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Companion Film Screening: ~15 minutes (optional prelude or standalone program)
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Space & Site Requirements
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Outdoor or site-specific performance space (riverbanks, parks, plazas, civic spaces)
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Access to nearby indoor rehearsal space preferred for teaching the flash mob
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Flexible audience capacity; performance designed for public viewing with no ticket barrier
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Sound system or portable amplification required for music and cues
Technical Needs
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Outdoor-capable sound system with portable power options. Can be brought in by Backstage Forward (our in house tech company)
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Projector/screen or indoor venue for companion film
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Flexible lighting if performed at dusk/evening (site-specific adaptation available)
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Transportation support for performers and equipment
Audience & Community Experience
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Audiences encounter dance as an immersive civic experience, often following the performers through a processional route
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Companion film deepens engagement, offering a cinematic meditation on stormwater infrastructure and urban planning
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Post-show discussions available, centering environmental education and community action
Educational & Community Engagement
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Flash mob choreography is accessible and teachable in 2–4 hours; designed for integration with school, community, public and university programs
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Rock Dance Collective offers guest teaching residencies, where sections of the larger work can be set on students at the university or high school level.
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Workshops and panels available on dance, environmental advocacy, and interdisciplinary collaboration
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Workshop available for teachers on turning data into large scale art
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Additional Notes
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Project is highly adaptable for grants, civic festivals, and partnerships with environmental organizations
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Designed to activate both local conversation and wide-scale environmental awareness
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Combines professional artistry with grassroots participation to make movement a tool for advocacy
To request the full Run Off video, press kit, and/or for booking inquiries contact:
908-561-9699