AN INVITATION
For the first time, the John F. Kennedy Center will host a celebration of the world’ s rivers with the city-wide RiverRun Festival in Washington, DC from April 3-16, 2023. Anchored on the Potomac River, the festival spotlights the cultures that rivers have spawned and their role as the life-sustaining arteries that connect our communities.
Potomac River Partners and the Kennedy Center bring together a collaboration of international environmental organizations, cultural institutions, artists and activists to focus on the critical role of water and rivers.
The festival offers unprecedented opportunities for local, national and international audiences to experience urgent messages about protecting the rivers, oceans and waters of the world for future generations.
Audiences will thrill to performances of hundreds of extraordinary talents locally and from around the world: musicians, actors, dancers, authors, filmmakers, chefs and visual artists, environmentalists and policy-makers.
These events will take place through the stages, grand halls and terraces of the Kennedy Center as well as the vibrant D.C. communities that link the Center to its own river, the Potomac.
In 1938, the Work Projects Administration (WPA) under the title, “Sunset Symphonies on the Potomac ” began a series of concerts performed by the National Symphony Orchestra anchored 30 feet out on a floating wharf. The audience sat on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. These free summer concerts delighted families and tourists alike until 1965.
The Potomac River Partners combines the legacy of these concerts not only with the Kennedy Center but also with the Watergate residences built on the banks of the Potomac River. This iconic architecture was named for the original “Watergate ” at Canal lock #1 where boats left the river and entered the C&O Canal.
OUR BLUE PLANET:
CELEBRATING EARTH AND ITS WATERS
On April 5, 2023 at 7:30 pm, the Potomac River Partners will present in the Terrace Theater, at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Our Blue Planet: Celebrating Earth and its Waters Concert with music and video images by NASA dramatizing the story of climate change over the last twenty years.
Young leaders, all champions of the environmental movement, will tell the stories of the indispensable role of rivers in our lives with a free concert designed to inspire and activate audiences. The concert will feature internationally-recognized guest conductor Emil DeCou who has worked with NASA for over 10 years and led the Vital Signs of the Planet Glasgow at the UN COP26 Climate Summit.
THE POTOMAC RIVER PARTNERS
THE WHARF
The Wharf reestablished Washington, DC, as a waterfront city and destination. This remarkable, mile-long stretch along the Potomac River comes to life with restaurants, retailers, residences, and businesses—all complemented by a vibrant culture that celebrates diversity and community.
LAKEARTS FOUNDATION
Creator of the Vital Signs of the Planet and Rolling on the River concerts is a collaboration of environmental organizations, educational and cultural institutions, artists and activists who have come together to bring the urgent messages of climate and the environment to the world. through the power of media, art, and technology.
WATERGATE COMMUNITY COALITION
The Watergate Community Coalition was formed to reinforce the commitment of the Watergate Community to the environment and the Potomac River, recreating the historic Watergate concerts and illustrating the indispensable role of rivers in community life.
POTOMAC RIVERKEEPERS NETWORK
With a mission to protect the public’s right to clean water in the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers and their tributaries, Potomac River Keepers works to stop pollution to enhance the safety of our drinking water, protect healthy river habitats, and enhance public use and enjoyment.
WASHINGTON PARKS AND PEOPLE Washington Parks & People, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, is the capital’s hub for activating public lands & waters for broad community revitalization – through partnership, innovation, discovery, and workforce development (WP&P is a 501C3 accepting local donations for the Potomac River Partners project).
ANACOSTIA WATERSHED SOCIETY
The Anacostia Watershed Society offers a variety of programs designed to accelerate the Anacostia River's progress towards swimmable and fishable waters by working to stop pollution, restoring the river's natural systems and rebuilding the community relationship to the river
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Focusing on the diverse aspects of the community and its relationship to the Potomac River, we will work together to cultivate a grassroots, community-driven approach to heritage conservation and economic development that supports historic preservation, natural resource conservation, recreation, heritage tourism, and educational projects.
HELEN HAYES AWARDS-THEATRE WASHINGTON
An alliance of theatre organizations, theatre-makers, and theatre supporters that foster collaboration by convening diverse organizations and individual artists within the community to work together to share expertise, resources, and responsibility for achieving common goals.
FRIENDS OF THE EARTH
Friends of the Earth International is an international network of environmental organizations in 73 countries. FOE envisions energy systems that are ecologically balanced, centered on community self-determination, and that recognize and address systemic inequity.
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
CONTACT US
All Contributions are Tax Deductible
Contact us for other opportunities to support the RiverRun Festival Concerts.
Title Sponsor of Rolling on the River
Title Sponsor of Our Blue Planet: Celebrating Earth and its Waters
Community Partner
Honorary Producer
Donate locally through Washington Parks and People
All Other Donations, please donate through LakeArts Foundation
Margaret Johnson
LakeArts Foundation
(716) 451-4004
mjohnson12339@gmail.com
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All donations will go toward supporting the Rolling on the River and Our Blue Planet Concerts.
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