Lou Reed Tai Chi Day is Aug 3; Laurie Anderson & John Zorn celebrating in Brooklyn

The late Lou Reed studied Tai Chi for 30 years and was a passionate advocate for the practice to promote mental and physical well-being. In honor of that, the inaugural International Lou Reed Tai Chi Day will be celebrated on Saturday, August 3 with simultaneous celebrations slated to take place in NYC, Paris, Warsaw, Berlin, San Francisco, and Washington D.C. The NYC event happens at the Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Library’s Grand Lobby beginning at 8:30 AM. Ren Guang Yi, Reed’s teacher for 12 years, and other teachers from different disciplines will lead a morning meditation followed by demonstrations and classes that represent many forms of Tai Chi. That event is free and open to the public, and no experience is necessary to attend. More info is here.

Later in the evening, International Lou Reed Tai Chi Day will be celebrated at Prospect Park Bandshell as part of the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival, with a demonstration by Master Ren who will be accompanied by a live performance of Reed’s “Drones” featuring Laurie Anderson, John Zorn, Sarth Calhoun and Stewart Hurwood. That will be followed by a screening of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. The Celebrate Brooklyn! event is also free and gates open at 6 PM (more info).

In conjunction, the Central Library currently has Reed’s library of Tai Chi books and some of his weapons on display.