Rufus Wainwright played the Centre for Performing Arts last night and I was in the house to see the show.Sarah Slean opened with a solo set that bounced back and forth between soft soul-bearing ballads and carnivalesque cheeky numbers. She was really working to entertain the audience with her stories of misconceptions of Paris, Vancouver versus Toronto, and enjoying the sophisticated venue of the Centre for her show.
Two sets of performance by Rufus included lots of numbers with his full band, which now includes a full horns (sax/flute, trumpet, french horn) section, and several times accompanied simply with his own piano-playing. For me it wasn't the never-let-me-down performance that he put on a few years at the Vogue Theatre, but it was full of highlights. Shining moments for me were Harvester of Hearts, Slideshow, Tulsa, and the Judy Garland numbers. The backdrop, explained after the first few songs, resembled the American flag with the bad things of the country represented in the black and white stripes and the good in the brooches that took the places of the stars. The encore included the skirt, nylons-only legs, high heels, and bright red lipstick that has become the signature showstopper for this tour. The crowd was roaring with their approval.
The ticket was printed "No Cameras/No Recorders," so photos (Vancouver) and video (not Vancouver) are borrowed.
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