Whenever Laurie Anderson performs, it is usually to an audience of human beings. This won’t be the case for her upcoming show in East Hampton.
The multidisciplinary artist, known for her compositions, films and avant-garde music, will put on her Concert for Dogs at the LongHouse Reserve Amphitheater on Saturday, August 13. She invites all canines and their loving owners to come out and enjoy upbeat music that both species will enjoy.
Not only will she give back to the canine community through her music, but she will also donate a portion of the evening’s proceeds to the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons in Wainscott to help the dogs who couldn’t attend. ARF will bring its adoption van to the concert with dogs in need of homes.
This is the first time that dogs, as well as Ms. Anderson, will get to experience the diverse LongHouse gardens. A reception will follow the performance, in which the dogs and their owners can socialize and explore the reserve’s 16-acre grounds.
Ms. Anderson remembered when she first entertained the idea eight years ago: “I was talking to cellist Yo-Yo Ma and said, ‘I have this fantasy that I look out in the audience and the whole crowd is dogs.’ And he said, ‘I have the same fantasy!’”
Being an experimental artist, this type of performance seems only fitting. Her first concert for dogs was held in front of the Sydney Opera House in 2010, and she has since then performed it in Times Square, The Brighton Festival in England and a smaller version on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
“I have so much fun doing it,” she said of these unique performances. “After Sydney, I was asked to do this in lots of places. I really don’t want to become the artist who does concerts for dogs, but I ended up becoming the artist who does concerts for dogs.”
Cellist Rubin Kodheli will accompany her on the outdoor stage as she plays violin and sings to the pups. The duo had recently performed in “Letters to Jack,” which she created for the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Although Ms. Anderson mainly lives in New York City, where her studio is located, she has a place in Springs, where she enjoys working.
“I love the LongHouse. It’s such a wacky place,” she rejoiced. “Being a neighbor, I saw pictures of the red trees and thought, ‘Who made this beautiful thing?’”
To complement her concert, Guild Hall will screen her 2015 documentary “Heart of a Dog” on Thursday, August 11, at 8 p.m. The film serves as a tribute to her late husband, Lou Reed, who was the vocalist and guitarist of The Velvet Underground, and their rat terrier Lolabelle. She created original violin and spoken word compositions for the soundtrack.
Laurie Anderson’s Concert for Dogs will take place at LongHouse Reserve, 133 Hands Creek Road, East Hampton, on Saturday, August 13, at 5:30 p.m. To purchase tickets, starting at $100, visit longhouse.org.
on Aug 8, 2016