Karen O Does Fast Food Film and Debuts Her Psycho Opera

by Kara Manning | 10/13/2011 | 9:01am

Karen O

Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Karen O certainly has highbrow and lowbrow interests these days. The raven-haired rock singer just covered a song made famous by Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings for a film for fast food chain Chipotle, plus her opera, "Stop The Virgens," premiered at Brooklyn's St. Ann's Warehouse last night, October 12.

Karen O's loping, laconic take on "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys" is not so much a commercial as a mini-documentary calling attention to the Chipotle Cultivate Foundation Halloween fundraising effort, Boorito, which helps small farms enduring economic hardship. There are more details about the October 31 in-store event, involving costumes and two-buck burritos, on Chipotle's own site, but proceeds of up to $1 million will go to the foundation and Farm Aid.

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhG8gnEAKks]

In addition, the singer, 32, debuted her so-called psycho-opera, "Stop The Virgens" as part of The Creators Project's Monster Arts and Culture Festival on Wednesday night. The collaboration with director/playwright Adam Rapp, which had its early start as an album before becoming an opera, stars her Yeah Yeah Yeahs' cohort Nick Zinner (who also serves as co-musical director), Lili Taylor (of "Six Feet Under" and "High Fidelity" fame),  Money Mark, Jack Lawrence, Patrick Keeler, Brian Chase, Nick Zinner, Jason Grisell, Gillian Rivers, Yuiko Kamakari and Justin Kantor.

Tickets are still available for "Stop The Virgens," described as an "assault on the tragic joys of youth, fever dreams drenched in visual seduction, a cathartic spell spun through a cycle of nine songs,"  through Saturday, October 22.

Weekdays at Noon

Ticket Giveaways from WFUV