HACKENSACK — Giant puppets, cultural performances, art installations and an interactive audio adventure will fill downtown Hackensack on Saturday, Oct. 3, during Illumination 250, a free, all-ages celebration of America’s 250th anniversary.
Activities run from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. at several downtown locations, building on the annual Hackensacktoberfest. The festival’s severe-weather date is Saturday, Oct. 10. A separate river performance is also scheduled for Oct. 10, and a light installation will remain on display through Oct. 25.
The schedule includes:
- Family Fun Day, 10 a.m.–2 p.m., Anderson Street Park: Interactive arts activities, games, food, music, community resources and a petting zoo.
- Quilt Trail, 11 a.m.–2 p.m., Anderson Street Park: An immersive installation combining quilt motifs with local historical photographs and stories.
- Pom Pom Field Fiber Art Workshop, 11 a.m.–2 p.m., Anderson Street Park: A workshop led by artist Kate Eggleston.
- Folk Artists on Main, noon–2 p.m. and 1–3 p.m., Main Street: Live music, dance and cultural performances reflecting the community’s diversity and representing local restaurants and businesses.
- Sips & Samples, 1–4 p.m., Main Street: Businesses offer free tastings and nonalcoholic beverages to procession participants and passersby.
- Hackensacktoberfest, 1–8 p.m., Atlantic Street Park: The seventh annual event features live music, DJs, food trucks and artisan vendors.
- Illumination 250 Exhibition, 1–8 p.m., HACPAC Art Gallery, 102 State St.: Visitors can stop in to view artwork.
- “A River’s Tale” Giant Puppet Procession, 2–3:30 p.m.: Beginning at Anderson Street Park and Ward Street, the procession features puppets created by Processional Arts Workshop and community members, music and dances by the Center for Modern Dance Education. Residents can sign up to march or operate a puppet.
- MP3 Experiment: A Revolutionary Adventure, 7:50–8:45 p.m., Atlantic Street Park, Main Street and the Historic Green: Improv Everywhere leads a participatory audio flash mob exploring the region’s Revolutionary War history. Participants should sign up and bring headphones or earbuds.
- My Signature: My Declaration, 9–9:30 p.m., Historic Green, 42 Court St.: Leni Schwendinger Light Projects presents a light and music installation and large-scale digital projection for the festival finale. The projection debuts at 9 p.m. Oct. 3 and will also be shown from sunset to midnight Oct. 4. The installation remains on display daily through Oct. 25, illuminated nightly from sunset to midnight.
Hackensack River Songs follows on Saturday, Oct. 10, from 5–7 p.m. at Foschini Park. The site-specific performance brings together singers, dancers, instrumentalists and electronic music on and around the river, with performers, boaters and vehicles converging to celebrate the waterfront.
Visitors may register in advance for one or more experiences.
Illumination 250 is a project of the Hackensack Performing Arts Center in partnership with the Northern New Jersey Community Foundation’s ArtsBergen, Main Street Business Alliance, Greater Bergen Community Action and the City of Hackensack. Funding comes through the New Jersey Economic Development Authority’s A.R.T. Phase II program.
For details and updates, visit illumination250.com or contact Danielle De Laurentis at artsbergen@nnjcf.org.
