ADRIENNE'S RUFUS WAINWRIGHT FAN PAGE
Our Matinee Idol
~~~
At the box (It’s not a box office at The Knitting Factory, just a box),
the guy told me all 3 shows had sold out. Like he was surprised. Ha!
Standing in the short line to hand over my ticket with the stairway to my right,
I felt somebody bump into me and then say “Excuse me,” and THAT VOICE!
Without thinking, I blurted “Rufus!” as I turned to see the lad himself
running up the stairs! He didn’t hear me. But he did bump me.
~~~
Once inside, I went down to the stage to a spot where some folks were
already in place. I met Kristin and others from Raising_The_Rufus sitting and
standing right by the piano (who was the very nice boy with the Folds Five
shirt, by the way?). They told me that the actor Paul Rudd was standing right
behind me! (With his girlfriend or is it wife?).
~~~
The opening act was Teddy Thompson (a colleague at Sony Music tells me Teddy
is the son of famed Brit folkies, Richard and Linda Thompson), who sang a few of his own songs
and one by Rufus called “Missing Children.” I love this song and must have
the lyrics and a recording of Ruf doing it.
~~~
Then Rufus came out with the same white pants he wore at the Supper Club show I saw, and a sort of a
red and white checked cowboy-style shirt. And he started right in at the
piano to play “Little Sister.” You’ll have to read Kristin’s report to get a
list of all the songs, but among the highlights for me were:
~~~
1) The “Greek Song” with mother Kate seated on the piano bench and
playing the mandolin, a beautiful arrangement with the addition of a bass and
drums (those two musicians played most of the show and were very good I
thought);
~~~
2) Evil Angel” about a sweet young journalist who led our Rufus on (in
the intro. Ruf described one makeout session, “no sex!”) and then stood him
up. Between the humorous and sardonic lines is a soaring, achingly romantic
heartbreak--Rufus-style! Ravishing description of Luxembourg (?)
magically lighting up at dusk, as if on cue;
~~~
3) “Liberty Cabbage” is a true, unsentimental tribute to America which I found all the more stirring
BECAUSE it is critical-satirical (just like the abiding love between the
dueling Kate and Rufus!) In his intro. he said this was the song that
convinced him he could have a wide audience, and he reminded us that though he was
raised basically in Canada, he was born in Rhinebeck, NY and went to Millbrook
boarding school, that he is a bona fide American--but with a brilliant
perspective;
~~~
4) a lovely hymn--Rufus’ setting of a famous poem by
William Blake called “London”--one of his attempts to merit the company of
“serious” composers;
~~~
5) then that rose song--Kristin says it’s “Roses Need Some
Water:“ when he practically keened the plaintive cry for water, for
caring, for attention, for love, I pictured the boy without a father--the coat
and hat, and “never a face”--and tears came to my eyes. I’m sure his
excellent diaphragm is involved, but Rufus’ voice, I swear, comes directly from
his heart to mine... .Speaking of his voice--it was in the best shape I’ve
heard it. The easy, mellow lower register hummed into the ear like a cello,
and he hit his high notes without the least strain.
~~~
So many wonderful new and old songs--oh, and “Rainbow Crossing,” now complete with a VERY
complicated and difficult-to-play (I imagine) piano accompaniement, he introduced
this way: “Most of you know I’m a Verdian--you know, the composer, Verdi.
Well, I’m also a closet Wagnerian!” At one point he referred directly to his
difficult piano stuff by saying he was taught by nuns who were NEVER
satisfied.... Martha was also on stage a lot, melting her dreamy
harmonic sound into a mic behind Ruf...
~~~
And brother and sister both melted their respective harmonies as backup for Kate’s
one front-and-center, an old song she wrote about NY, which was a delight--she’s
a very smart writer and a sexy performer. Did I mention I fell a bit in love
with Kate this time? They did a couple of encores after a show that lasted a good 90
minutes.
~~~
To introduce the final encore, just he and Kate on stage, he said, "I
was FORCED to sing this as a child--it made me a GAY man." And then when
he goes to get a bottle of water or something, Kate leans into her mic at
the piano and says, "It was your father who took you to your first
musical." (Big Laugh) And then Ruf comes back to the center stage mic and says,
"Mother, you ARE a f-***-in' musical!" (Bigger Laugh) And then he does
a couple of lines of "Rose's Turn" from "Gypsy"!!!! (Biggest Laugh)
~~~
Then, he proceeds to sing “Over The Rainbow” beautifully. (Although he
substituted a word or two here and there--not cool: E.Y. Harburg was one of the truly
great tin pan alley lyricists) And at the end:
~~~
If happy little blue birds fly
Beyond (he sang “above”) the rainbow
Why, then, oh why--can’t--I?
~~~
he sang the last two words in a way I’ve never heard before--whereas
Judy Garland sang them as written, Rufus went up (an octave?) on “can’t”,
in a really electrifying finish--a pure, strongly held, strongly felt HIGH
note, totally unexpected. The place erupted.
~~~
Afterwards, I went straight to the t-shirt table to get a Rufus shirt (Looks like he illustrated it
himself) and there was Paul Rudd. So I talked briefly to him about when he
played Orsino in “Twelfth Night,” and then I went to wait for Rufus--’cause
we’ve never met, and we should!
~~~
Well, the family McGarrigle-Wainwright just was not emerging even after an hour,
so when at long last I saw Teddy Thompson come down to the bar and grab a
couple of mixed drinks (one was pink) and go back upstairs, I figured
it was time for me to pack it in--I had to work the next day--and I had a long walk to the subway.
~~~
What a show.
~~~
love,
Doug
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