The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
#0The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 11:14am
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/04/fashion/sundaystyles/04RUFUS.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all
As a result of this puff piece in the Styles section I will stay away from his ridiculous Judy show at Carnegie Hall. I am sure a queer like Isherwood or Holden will give him a rave review to get into his pants. And that fans of Kiki and Herb, Sutton F, and three-named composers will fill the Hall thinking this is an evening of musical genius instead of a gimmick to save Rufus's floundering career.
Stick with Miss Garland's CD for the real deal.
Do you know what happens when you let Veal Prince Orloff sit in an oven too long?
#1re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 11:26am
With considerable apprehension, PalJoey will be there. But this excerpt from the article, at least, bodes well:
===
The melodrama of Garland as a consummate victim is seemingly of less interest to Mr. Wainwright than that of Garland the musician with the phenomenal instrument and profound capacity to inhabit a lyric and a tune...
Before anything else, Judy Garland was a musician with an almost shamanistic ability to divine the meaning of a lyric and to add an interpretation of her own to even the most overplayed tune.
"After 9/11, when we first were going to war and the state of things looked pretty dismal, I bought the rerelease," Mr. Wainwright said, referring to the remastered double-CD recording of the 1961 concert. "Somehow that album, no matter how dark things seemed, made everything brighten. She had this capacity to lighten the world through the innocence of her sound. Her anchor to the material was obviously through her devotion to music. You never feel that she didn't believe every word of every song she ever sang."
Judy: 
Rufus: 
#2re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 11:29am
Is this going to be yet another Judy impersonation?
I don't want to see anyone "being" Judy. It makes no sense to me.
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
#3re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 11:46am
The weird thing, Rath, is that he's NOT doing an impersonation.
He's going to perform the entire consert as Rufus.
Now I can hear the ballad sections in his voice, but the barnstormers? The thrilling songs she did at the top of her range that made our spines tingle? How can he pull those off?
Chicago? San Francisco? Rockabye?
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#4re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 11:46ami think its going to be done with the utmost respect & reverence; i dont think its a cheap gimmick.
#5re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 12:16pm
"He's going to perform the entire consert as Rufus."
How arrogant do you have to be to want to do that? Am I the only one who finds this sickening?
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
#6re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 12:27pm
Rufus's career has stalled. He needs a gimmick to get his name out there.
If and when Holden or Isherwood give him a rave, then he can tour to the usual gay hotspots with this show.
And Sam Mendes is filming this??? Gay. What straight man would get involved in a train wreck like this.
Do you know what happens when you let Veal Prince Orloff sit in an oven too long?
ZONEACE
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/10/05
#7re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 12:28pmI find it silly. I personally don't understand why anyone would want to see it. There doesn't appear to be any point.
when ducks grow thumbs then maybe my opinion will change.
#8re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 12:29pm
"And Sam Mendes is filming this???"
It just gets worse and worse!
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#9re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:21pm
Am I the only one who thinks this might be interesting? I have to find something of Mr. Wainwright's to listen to, but unless the arrangements are just awful (think standards by Michael Bolton and Rod Stewart), it might be fun.
Updated On: 6/4/06 at 01:21 PM
#10re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:32pm
I actually am very intrigued. I think Rufus is an amazing talent (mostly as a writer), and also a bit of a mess.
I think Judy was both of those things as well... but on a much grander scale on both counts.
As long as he doesn't "thumb his nose" at her (or that historic evening) creatively, it could be a very fascinating and potentially emotional evening.
It could possibly be a case of "everything old is new again," "history repeating" or a combination of nostalgia and innovative vision, all at once.
The proof will be in the first few numbers... when the "tone" of the evening is set, and the artistic intent is made clearer.
I'm actually quite curious!
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#11re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:36pm*goes to sit by herself in a corner*
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#12re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:36pmYour dad is very handsome. Good genes.
#13re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:46pm
Thanks, chita33!
If that's YOU in your av, I think I'm in love.
*pours cold water over his head*
*performs much-needed reality check*
*calms down*
Rathy--Don't sit by yourself in a corner. Give our Rufus Messy-Boy a chance. Let's see what he has in mind first.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#14re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:48pm
Okay, Twelvy. I'll do it for you.
But I won't like it.
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
Kringas
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/27/05
#15re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:48pm
I think it's an interesting idea, but I simply cannot stand the sound of his voice. It's what I'd imagine a sheep with emphysema would sound like if that sheep decided to cut an album.
"How do you like THAT 'misanthropic panache,' Mr. Goldstone?" - PalJoey
Updated On: 6/4/06 at 01:48 PM
#16re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:50pm
Kringas---I HAVE that album!
Their rendition of "Swanee" is surprisingly good.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#17re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:50pm
No. That's not me. I'm 40! But he is nice to look at.
edit: back on topic, I just listened to "I'll Build A Stairway To Paradise" by Wainwright and I liked his voice but it did seem like he didn't have enough air? It felt a little weak. Let's see how he does with the big sock 'em numbers...
Updated On: 6/4/06 at 01:50 PM
Kringas
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/27/05
#18re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:52pmGood for them, not letting the illness sidetrack their careers.
"How do you like THAT 'misanthropic panache,' Mr. Goldstone?" - PalJoey
#19re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 1:57pmDo you really want to hear Rufus sing "Stormy Weather"? "Do It Again"? "The Trolley Song"?
Do you know what happens when you let Veal Prince Orloff sit in an oven too long?
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#20re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 2:00pmYou know who I think could have done justice to the material in that concert? Dorothy Loudon!
#21re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 2:00pm
I was against seeing this when it was first announced. I'm not a big fan of Rufus anyway (I thought he butchered "The Origin of Love"), but anything to do with Judy in the least gets me interested. This is beyond camp though. It screams of arrogance to me.
Tsk, tsk, tsk Rufus, stay where you're better aquainted.
#22re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 2:01pmThis concert was already done. Does he think he can improve on it? I STILL don't get the point.
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
Kringas
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/27/05
#23re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 2:03pmPerhaps he'll knock it out of the park. He's never struck me as an idiot, so I'll give him the benefit out the doubt. Of the people who actually know who he is, I find that I'm in the minority in not caring for him. I just hope he opens his mouth wider than he usually does on some of the more belty numbers, because he always sounds like he's barely making an effort, like it's a big hassle for him to have to sing.
"How do you like THAT 'misanthropic panache,' Mr. Goldstone?" - PalJoey
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#24re: The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright
Posted: 6/4/06 at 2:07pm
Rath you're absolutely right. This concert has already be done definitively.
...but it's Judy! I know, I know. I'm just a big theatre queen at heart and when I hear Judy something something in me starts to zing!
Updated On: 6/4/06 at 02:07 PM
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