Last night was truly a night never to be forgotten.

I set off to London (Ontario) with my best friend Kathy to see the fantastic Rufus Wainwright in concert. As to be expected, I was beside myself with excitement. This was only my second time seeing Rufus live, the first being only mere months ago in June. I have been a devoted Rufus fan since the release of his album “Poses” in 2001.

We had fantastic 6th row seats at Centennial hall for the concert. Rufus took the stage in all his glory dressed in a red and white striped suit (minus a shirt under his jacket) and decked out with sparkly pins, bracelets, rings and necklace.

Rufus played all 12 tracks from his new album “Release the Stars” as well as a few handfulls of songs from past albums and a few numbers by Judy Garland. A costume change included Rufus returning to stage in his german liderhosen and the encore a cabaret drag routine with Rufus applying lipstick and singing his version of Judy Garland’s “Get Happy” wearing pantyhose, high heels and suit jacket (pants? nope!) Rufus is a brilliant entertainer and his voice is overwhelming and haunting beautiful. I was left many times with goosebumps and near tears in my eyes. I cannot but the beauty of his voice and piano combined live into words.

Along with his absolute greatness, Rufus has a wonderful sense of humor and often gets off on a rant to the audience, forgets what his point was, and ends up with all of us (Rufus included) laughing hysterically. He said he was a little spaced last night and was trying to remember where London was. “Are we above or below Toronto? Are we near a lake? Which one?” The audience shouting out different answers only made him more confused. He then attempted to start his song “Leaving for Paris” and it clicks in his mind “There’s a Paris in Ontario!!!” which prompts a laughing fit throughout the rest of the song. Too much fun!

After the concert Kathy and I (along with a good group of others as well) walked around the back of Centennial Hall and waited by the tour busses. After about maybe an hour Rufus came out to meet us! He was beautiful, so kind and sweet. While walking out to us he said something about not posing for pictures because he was not feeling well. We could however take pictures of him while he was there.

Rufus made his way around to the group of a good 50 people. He smiled his enchanting smile as he came up to me and said hello. He signed the poster I bought at the show and I told him how wonderful it was to meet him. He smiled again and said thank you. Still having his attention I was about to tell him how much his music has touched my life, especially over this past year, and how grateful I am to have his music around me and how his art is able to keep me happy and gives me hope. However, as I was about to tell him this his assistant (or whoever she was) taps my shoulder and says “You CAN’T get a picture with him!” That totally caught me off guard as I didn’t even ask him for a picture, he said he didn’t want to pose, I get that and respect it. Ididn’t even have my camera in my hand! Kathy had it actually. So I have no idea what her problem was but she completely stole away my moment and in those few seconds Rufus had moved on to signing the next autograph so my window of opportunity was gone. It was a really bizzare moment, I have no idea why she said that to me but I was pretty annoyed that she did and I lost my chance. Maybe she was just tired and in a rush, the band was leaving that night for Toronto so Rufus could tape a segment for Bravo today.

However, I don’t hold this against Rufus whatsoever. This was in no way his fault, infact he probably didn’t even see it happen. I have nothing but respect and love for this man. He has touched my life in such a wonderful way and nothing could ever ever change that. I’m so happy and thrilled for the few moments I got to have with him last night and if I have learnt anything over the past year is to keep positive and believe that there WILL be another chance to meet him again. Good things come to those who wait.

One of my favourite parts of the show was when Rufus sang the Irish song “Macushla” It was taught to him by his mother (the great Kate McGarrigle of the McGarrigle Sisters) and it is sung without a microphone. Rufus’ voice filled the hall with splendor and beauty. Macishla means “heart throb” and Rufus jokingly adds “yeah….it’s a song about me”

I have wanted to get something Rufus related done as a tattoo but have been struggling for a long time with an idea. Last night while waiting for the concert to start Kathy looks at the poster I bought and said she thinks it would make a beautiful back piece. The poster is not like your typical photograph done up poster style but more of a sketch of Rufus with lovely stars and accents around him. Kathy is so right when she says it would be a great tattoo. It will definitely be a gorgeous portrait and I plan on making it happen…and soon!

My husband is not as excited about my idea but I think this is a situation where we will have to agree to disagree. My love and respect for Rufus has grown so much over the past year or two, ever since my struggle with Fibromyalgia started. Before I was diagnosed I went through a good year of being scared and angry and not knowing what would happen to me. Rufus was one of the people who I could really find comfort in. His music could take me to a place where thee was no pain and only happiness. After my diagnosis in September of 2006 his music continued to help and heal. He keeps me calm and keeps me peaceful. He gives me a lot of hope because Rufus himself has had a lot of obstacles to over come in his life. He’s gay and came out as a teenager. He fell victim of rape shortly after and in the early 2000’s became addicted to crystal meth which left him temporarily blind and soon after found his way into rehab. Even after all of this Rufus was able to get through it, continue his career, and grow as a person. He gives me the hope that I too can grow, be happy and face my chronic pain condition head on. He has given me the hope that I will be ok and I can do it even when things spiral down and I have more pain than I can deal with that at the end of it all I can survive. I know my husband does understand where I’m coming from but it’s hard to wrap your head around if you yourself do not live with a chronic pain condition. Sometimes with a condition such as this one you have to be a little selfish and do what is right for you. This tattoo I know is right and will allow me to carry a little piece of Rufus with me everywhere I am and I can look at it when I need that extra boost and be reminded of everything good that I am and that I can overcome these obstacles. Hopefully I will be able to tell this all to Rufus in person, show him that tattoo and say thank you.

Ok, I know there must be some of you out there thinking that I have said similar things about other important people in my life, and yes, that is true but just to clear the air, these people have all impacted my life in their own special way and I in turn have my own way of keeping these people close to me.

I found this article about Rufus interesting;

WAINWRIGHT’S BUMPY RIDE TO FAME by Sunny BurnsRufus Wainwright is excited about inspiring Australia.He was born into showbiz royalty but who would’ve thought that a pedigree like Rufus Wainwright’s could lead to a life of rape, drug abuse and gay beats?

But it is these experiences, plus a host of others that have inspired Wainwright’s latest album, Release The Stars, which he says reveals the complex mind of a post-modern musician.

“I’ve produced the fifth album myself. It’s a very comfortable record but is a lot more assertive about what I want and need from life,” Wainwright said.

“The whole idea is that it’s time to release your love and ideas – to take action and be somebody.

“My favourite songs are Slideshow and Do I Disappoint You. They capture my perception of what I thought the song would be like when I wrote them.”

Already midway through his world tour, Wainwright will arrive in Australia for a string of concerts in January.

“It’s going to be a big show – there’ll be eight of us on stage,” he said.

“All of us will be dressed on stage – with costume changes, dancing and dramatic impulses. The costumes will be a mixture of Eurocentric and Allah.”

Wainwright is the son of singers Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle. He rose to popularity on the Montréal club circuit when he was in his 20s, where he won a Juno award for best alternative album.

But Wainwright doesn’t believe his success is based on his famous pedigree – though it did have some influence.

“It wasn’t like being in the Jackson 5 and my parents weren’t superstars – there was room to grow,” he said.

“I feel very fortunate to know how to operate on a stage through an infantile instinct that I practically received from my mother’s breast.”

But like many young stars, and many children of well-known parents, Wainwright’s life has not always been a bed of roses. Coming out was the cause of much grief and despair.

“I came out to myself at 14, which was quite rare back then,” he said.

“I couldn’t come out to my parents then because that would have freaked them out because of AIDS. I accepted that and started hanging out in a lot of parks.”

But that passion for beats soon caused its own problems, with Wainwright sexually assaulted in London’s Hyde Park.

“It made me not want to have sex for a long time, which in retrospect was horrific and I had to deal with the mental issues,” Wainwright said.

“It was probably not a good idea to have sex at that time but it made me concentrate on my songwriting.”

But it was his battle with drugs, particularly crystal meth, that had the biggest impact on Wainwright both personally and professionally. It was a battle he won, but only thanks to the help of friends and family – particularly Sir Elton John.

“There are no redeeming qualities with crystal and it’s not worth trying or contemplating. It’s in a league of its own,” he said.

“With gay men it targets the fear and repression and diseases and anxiety. It’s the devil.

“I don’t know if I had a near-death experience, but the emotional breakdown helped me stop.”

But life after 30 is proving a boon time for Wainwright. He plans to write many more songs and record more material which he hopes will inspire the world on to bigger and better things.

But Wainwright says he still has one major concern in his life – the insipidness of the gay community.

“It’s become dull and dumb. The unfortunate pay-off to easy access to a homosexual lifestyle is that the mystery has dissolved and you don’t have to try as hard as you used to,” he said.

“I don’t want gay men today to forget that we have this amazing heritage and intense history that shouldn’t be forgotten. There was a time gay people had to be smart to survive.”

Rufus Wainwright plays at Sydney State Theatre on Tuesday 29 and Wednesday 30 January 2008. Tickets for the 30 January concert go on sale Thursday 6 September —————–

Thanks for reading (for those of you that did) Feel free to comment!

Here are some pics!

autograph close up :)