Rufus Wainwright
Rufus Wainwright
Rufus McGarrigle Wainwrightis an American-Canadian singer-songwriter and composer. He has recorded seven albums of original music and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written a classical opera and set Shakespeare sonnets to music for a theater piece by Robert Wilson...
NationalityCanadian
ProfessionOpera Singer
Date of Birth22 July 1973
CityRhinebeck, NY
CountryCanada
house earth opera
I've always gravitated towards opera, and the Royal Opera House is quite possibly the greatest opera house on earth.
gay men age
When I was signed, at the age of 23...the fact that I presented myself as an out gay man was very, very unusual.
sleep light sensitive
I'm hyper light-sensitive and must sleep in the equivalent of a sealed tomb.
folks folk-music
I was reared on folk music.
focus needs opera
I want to carve out a serious period of time to focus on the next opera without any distractions. And to do that you need money.
mean gay dark
I knew I was gay when I was around 13. There wasn't the internet, there weren't support groups, AIDS was everywhere. I mean, it was really dark.
mother feels labor
I very much faced my mother's death with hard, arduous and time-consuming labor. The more I would do, the less I would feel.
thinking age young
I think everybody identified at a pretty young age that I was fairly entranced with myself. And that I had to be tempered.
powerful believe love-is
I still believe that love is the most powerful force in the world, even though I am yet to experience it fully.
pain enlightenment twenties
The moment something happens to one you love, it's twenty times more intense. You experience pain and enlightenment on a much vaster scale.
children nuts evil
I definitely was always expected and encouraged to be a songwriter from a very young age, ... But really it's because, as a child, I thought I was Judy Garland. And when I started out, I was a little nuts. I thought I was a classic, legendary superstar when only 10 people knew who I was. I feel in some ways that my confidence is misinterpreted as arrogance, which is understandable. But I've also always thought that false modesty is evil.
sleep rocks trying
I'm very fit on tour. I try to eat well, try to sleep. But it's still rock n' roll.
play desire opera
The operas I listen to aren't in English, and I want to listen to my opera after I'm done with it. I want to have the desire to play it on the stereo. To me, the language is part of the mystery.
mother inspiration thinking
I think my mother, more than anyone, knew the importance of inspiration. If it was occurring, you had to use it.