Set for North American tour with new Solo Work

September 2004-March 2005

This fall, Laurie Anderson, one of the world's most accomplished performance artists, will embark on a North American tour with a new solo work "The End of the Moon." Anderson, who is currently serving as NASA's first artist-in-residence, will begin her tour on September 29 at Hancher Auditorium, University of Iowa (Iowa City) and finish with a two week residency at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York.

"The End of the Moon" is the second in a trilogy of new solo performance works that combine stories, songs, and music, in an intimate and low-tech setting. Anderson’s new show will also include music for violin and electronics creating a "duet" between the spoken word and her signature musical sound.

Following the first piece in this series "Happiness" (2002) in which Anderson told stories about her time spent working at a McDonald's in New York City and living on an Amish Farm, the new work also draws upon Anderson's recent experiences and research. Part travelogue, part personal theories, history and dreams, "The End of the Moon" looks at the relationships between war, esthetics, spirituality and consumerism. Collectively, Anderson envisions this solo trilogy as an 'epic poem' which aims to paint a large picture of contemporary American culture.

For her new work, Anderson began examining the question, "Who taught you what beauty is?" Unable to provide an answer, Anderson set off in search of one. She began to delve into what people think of as "beauty" and began by embarking on a range of physical and philosophical explorations of the natural world. In addition to her travels as NASA's artist-in-residence Anderson set off on a series of multi-day walks in various locations including Greece, France, England and Sri Lanka.

In addition to this new work, Anderson has been commissioned to create a film as well as an audio-visual walk for 2005 World Expo in Aiichi Japan. She also recently worked on the team that created the opening ceremony for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Please visit Laurie Anderson's website for more information.