Laurie Anderson's new multimedia performance piece, Delusion, received its world premiere at the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre last night as part of the Cultural Olympiad events tied to the 2010 Winter Olympics. Performances continue there through Sunday, after which Anderson will take the show to Williams College in Western Massachusetts next week.

Anderson spoke with CBC News arts writer Martin Morrow about Delusion, which she describes as "a poor man's Avatar." And while she may be joking about that, says Morrow, the comparison to this year's biggest Oscar contender may not be so far off.

"If you think about it," writes Morrow, "the category-defying U.S. musician and performance artist has always been a kind of avant-garde James Cameron. Like the Avatar director, Anderson is an unabashed tech geek who can't resist using the latest technology—or inventing her own—in order to tell a tale." Of course, two notable differences remain: "If Anderson doesn't have Cameron's blockbuster budget, she's certainly a more sophisticated storyteller."

Read the complete article at cbc.ca.

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Anderson spoke with the Vancouver Sun's Kevin Griffin about the new work and her alter ego, Fenway Bergamot, whose name was chosen by her husband, Lou Reed. The inclusion of Bergamot in the show, she explains, meant that politics could not remain off the program.

"Bergamot is the social commentator," Anderson tells the Sun. "I was going to try to stay a little bit away from politics for a bit of a change. I thought: 'I'm going to make a work of words and the imagination.' Then, you know, you get caught up in the great stories of the day. They get thrown into the mix."

Griffin describes Anderson as "one of those rare artists who have moved from the avant-garde into the world of pop culture and celebrity while still retaining her creative and experimental edge."

You can read the article at vancouversun.com.

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In the lead-up to last night's premiere, Anderson also spoke with the Globe and Mail's Marsha Lederman, explaining the piece as "a collection of stories about identity ... and ancestors and relatives and where you come from, where you’re going. Those small questions." Not least among those relatives is her mother, who died last year and to whom Anderson dedicates the new work. Learn more at theglobeandmail.com.

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There's more on Delusion in The Province, to whom Anderson says of the new piece, "It's about the voice and conversation and a collection of stories that kind of ramble through dogs, Russia's space program, ancestors and a fair amount of political commentary and a lot of violin." You'll find that article at theprovince.com.

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For information on upcoming performances of Delusion and all of Anderson's upcoming appearances, visit nonesuch.com/on-tour.