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Rufus Wainwright Creates His Own Oz

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The devoted fan dressed up as Judy Garland during a 2007 concert that has been turned into a CD and DVD, 'Milwaukee at Last!'

Martin Scorsese once called Rufus Wainwright a “one-man Greek chorus." The hyperliterate singer-songwriter is the son of folk singers Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle, a devoted fan of Judy Garland and recently an opera composer. (His first, the French-language “Prima Donna," premiered this summer.) His next release is a live album, “Milwaukee at Last!!!," which was recorded during a 2007 concert and filmed by documentarian Albert Maysles. Both the CD and DVD are out Tuesday.

What was the highlight of that night in Milwaukee?

When you know the eyes that are looking at you through the camera are Albert Maysles', the same eyes that witnessed Edie Beale waltzing down her filthy living room steps, it's really electrifying. That night was smack in the middle of the Release the Stars tour, so I was a well-oiled machine at that point. Ready to give Judy to the public, you know? And what better place to test that out than in the Midwest? Right in the heartland.

How did they react? You dressed as Judy Garland during the encore, but only after you wore lots of sequins and lederhosen first.

Well, my audience has always been rather crazed about me, so together we just got swept up in the whirlwind. It was amazing.

I just want people to get their money's worth. I know how hard it is to survive in this economic climate and I want people to remember my shows and want to come back for more. So I just imprint their minds with, you know, lewd visions.

The Metropolitan Opera originally commissioned “Prima Donna," an opera about a fading opera star. What was the inspiration for it?

The idea kind of shot into my brain after watching these interviews with Maria Callas, but I very quickly realized that her story is so well-known and so overdone. It occurred to me, though, that the idea of an opera singer is pretty brilliant and hasn't been done, so I ran with it. I had many things to draw upon. First, I'm a singer myself, and while I wouldn't say I'm a prima donna, I am pretty tempestuous, so I put some of me in there. Also, because the main character, Regine, is an opera singer, it allowed me to sort of lean on my romantic sensibilities. A lot of the music from her old repertoire is swirling in Regine's head, so I didn't feel constrained. There was no pressure to be either modern or romantic -- I could go across the board.

Did you feel liberated while writing it? Your last solo album of original music, “Release the Stars," was already a pretty operatic production.

The only way I can describe writing an opera is that when you start out you're on the moon, you think it's going to be great. Then in the middle of the whole process you go, “What the hell was I thinking? I'm never doing this again. I hate everyone in my life. I might as well kill myself." Then it premieres and it's almost like a type of amnesia takes over. You think, “I can't wait to do it again! Show me to the next cliff!" Actually, I think I want to do a musical next. That way I can sing and star in it.

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