Rufus Wainwright (gig)

Rufus Wainwright
State Theatre, Sydney (29th January, 2008)

Supported by Leena

The State Theatre is a vast auditorium, and for the meek singer-songwriter, the expanse must be intimidating. I feel that was the case for poor Leena, whose set felt overwhelmed. While she showed plenty of promise with glimpses of talent (particularly 'After the Rain' on the keys), there was nothing striking about her voice or instrumental prowess. Instead, it was very clear that the theatre was grander than her presence and abilities. I do hope that she will grow into performance and come back more relaxed and able to start a rapport with future audiences.

Conversely, it seems Rufus Wainwright is a born performer. Gregarious, cheeky and brimming with campness, the droll musician is one of the few people who can walk the tightrope between class and trash and not take a fall, especially in the type of clothes he chooses to wear to performances.

Wainwright has plenty of sparkle, literally and metaphorically, which he shared with his eight piece band, making the live experience richer for it. As this gig followed the issue of his recent album 'Release the Stars', most of the set revolved around a mix of the album's content. Some songs on the album I found a bit flat, but in the live setting Wainwright does a superb job of making everything seem ten times more exciting than it probably is.

The picks of the night were the jaunty 'Matinee Idol', the thumping 'Between My Legs' (with the speaking part completed by competition winner Chantal) and a rather brash version of 'Do I Disappoint You'. And I'd probably follow that with his a cappella rendition of an Irish folk song (I forget the name), which was both touching and, well, showing off his vocal talents (why am I not surprised?) as well as the 'Rufus does Judy Garland' section (see above image) in the latter part of the gig. I wish my legs were like that!

Wainwright deserved all the accolades. His banter between songs was witty and self-deprecating (before 'Leaving for Paris' he mentioned that he wrote it for the film Moulin Rouge but it was eventually dropped in the final edit of the movie, "and that was a flop so let that be a lesson") and by the end of the night he had the audience eating from his hand.

A top class performer, a must-see live even if you only have a passing interest in his music.

Gig rating: 8/10
Enjoyment rating: 10/10

Red business

Rufus Wainwright is coming to town and I'm going to see him tomorrow night at the State Theatre. What a pity, then, that I missed this competition, which was posted on his website:
"Going to a Town to see Rufus? Want to perform the spoken word part of 'Between My Legs' live on stage with Rufus? Rufus will select a special guest for all of his shows in Australia..."

The blurb goes on to read that you have to do a YouTube audition but it has to be submitted five days before the show - d'oh! missed it!

But there's a river going underground under the town... Oh bugger, I'm terrible at remembering lyrics. How does it go?
"Because there's a river
Running underground
Underneath the town towards the sea
That only I know all about
On which from this city we can flee
On which from this city we can flee"

Did I mention I'm also going to see The Phantom of the Opera in May? My flatmate bought tickets for my birthday (also in May) to thank me for spending heaps of money on The Whitlams at the Opera House gig we went to for her birthday last year.

The interesting thing is that his shows haven't sold out in Australia. The two Sydney shows are still fair game with only one (of two) Melbourne shows sold out and Perth also devoid of tickets. I wonder whether it is because he's not well-known yet here or if it has to do with festival fatigue? We've just had the Sydney Festival and the Big Day Out and a whole bunch of minor festivals (e.g. the Spirit of Soul Festival) chug through this city and his show comes at the end of the season where people have just bled money from Christmas and dozens of parties. Hmm.

Now I'm listening to 'Complainte De La Butte' that he did for the 'Moulin Rouge' soundtrack - he seems to do a lot of soundtracks. I also had 'Across the Universe' (from the film 'I am Sam') playing earlier. But I must confess I like Fiona Apple's version (for 'Pleasantville') better, but can't seem to buy it as an individual track off iTunes. Rufus will do.

With teeth

I have to get my wisdom teeth out.

Bugger.

Brisbane in six pars

Storm brewing over Story Bridge, Brisbane

My trip to Brisbane, in six paragraphs.

Day 1: Arrive Brisbane, new year's day. Skippy tells me to catch the train to Brunswick St. We eat dinner at Superbowl with Dr H and his girl. Girl doesn't like Skippy, which gives way to a new Skippy neurosis. Go for gelato where they are playing the Dave Matthews Band. Coincidentally meet Skippy's boy (Vampire) Slayer and a bunch of his friends. Brisbane turns out to be smaller than I thought. It's Slayer's flatmate Smokeless' birthday.

Day 2: Ride the City Cat river service for two hours, then disembark at Southbank in the pouring rain. Take refuge in the Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA, G-o-M-A GoMA) by spending a couple of hours at the Andy Warhol exhibition. Have dinner at an Indian place called Sultan's Kitchen with Skippy, Slayer, Skippy's flatmate Melbourne Girl (MG) and the poet Ross Clark.

Day 3: Do the city walk from Roma St Parklands to QUT via Brisbane's monuments, then have Devonshire tea at T-licious in Southbank. Stock up on $7.25 worth of lollies at the Great Aussie Sweet Shop. Stop in at the Queensland Museum to see the Museum Zoo exhibition. Dinner is home-cooked (primo by me, secondi by Skippy), followed by a blackout and a lot of washing up.

Day 4: Head to the hills with the Bird, an old work friend, and her partner the Quail. Visit Eumundi, home town of PM Kevin Rudd, and have morning tea at the Berkelouw book store where the Bird discovers a long sought-after tome. Also do a circuit of Maleny, home of the most contentious Woolworths in Australia, buying up at Maleny Cheese and chowing down at Colin James Fine Foods. We spend the afternoon at Art on Cairncross and discover we look like The Wiggles.

Day 5: A sunny day! Fortitude Valley Markets, a long walk along the river via the Botanic Gardens to the Southbank Markets, catch 'I Am Legend' with MG and a couple of her friends. Meet up with Skippy who is with Green Man and his adorable dog Molly. Green Man comes for dinner, drinks wine and eats Maleny brie with Slayer and Smokeless.

Day 6: Wangle a last minute booking for 11:30am at High Societea in Clayfield for Skippy, MG, Slayer and myself. Although I invited Smokeless last night, his appearance is a surprise considering he arrived home from a bender at 8:30 that morn. Three tiers of tea-soaked goodness ensues. When am I coming back to Brisbane? (March!) Flight delayed for two hours due to storms. Pink Martini awaits me in Sydney.

2007 Film Wrap-up

I saw a lot of films, not least due to the influence of my movie buddy (my flatmate) whose only pastime seems to be watching films and TV (on DVD). I also managed to obtained a fair number of free tickets through vouchers given by family and winning minor competitions, so there you go.

Here's a list of films I saw in 2007 (* = recommended):
Eragon
Babel *
Pan's Labyrinth *
I'm Your Man * (Leonard Cohen fans)
Tibet: A Trilogy
Stranger than Fiction
My Neighbour Totoro
Year of the Hare
300 *
Sunshine *
Paris, Je T'Aime
Curse of the Golden Flower
The Science of Sleep
The Namesake
Before the Music Dies
The History Boys
Spiderman 3
Tales from Earthsea
Zodiac
The Page Turner
Digital Projections (short film compilation)
All in this Tea * (tea lovers)
Comedy Shorts (short film compilation)
Death at a Funeral *
Forever (the doco)
Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End
Teeth *
Poison Friends
Heavenly Kings
Romulus, My Father
The Dead Girl
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
The Shootout (short film compilation)
As it is in Heaven
The Simpsons Movie
4 * (classical music fans)
Day Watch *
Sicko *
Hairspray
Howl's Moving Castle
Rush Hour 3
Across the Universe
Forbidden Lies
Beowulf
Tell No One
Elizabeth: The Golden Age
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
The Golden Compass


Award for the most hyped movie to disappoint:
Beowulf

Award for the most hyped movie to live up to hype:
Pan's Labyrinth
Honourable mention to 300

Award for the most serendipitous movie:
Teeth
I went to see it on a whim as part of the Sydney Film Festival and found it perfectly pitched as a dark comedy with some great performances.

Best Actor in any role:
Kal Penn in The Namesake
Honourable mention to Eric Bana in Romulus, My Father

Best Actress in any role:
Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth: The Golden Age (not Babel)
Honourable mention to Amanda Bynes in Hairspray

Best movie based on another text:
300, based on an account of the Battle of Thermopylae by Herodotus and 300, the graphic novel by Frank Miller
Honourable mention to The History Boys, based on a play by Alan Bennett AND The Golden Compass, based on Northern Lights, a novel by Philip Pullman

Best Comedy:
Death at a Funeral

Best Drama:
Pan's Labyrinth

Best Documentary:
4

BEST MOVIE OF 2007:
Teeth
Oh so deliciously, darkly, cruelly funny. Teeth treads the fine line between good film-making and bad taste so unerringly, it's difficult to know what to like most - the uncomfortable foreknowledge of certain characters' fates or the snide jibes about society's aversion to vaginas. I'm thankful it's coming out at the theatres soon as I'm dying to share it with other people so I can talk about it.

Am I privileged?

Privilege Meme, pass it on.

Apparently this questionnaire is supposed to show how privileged you are. I've done some poking around and can't seem to find (ie am too lazy to find) the original but I think the more 'bolded' statements you have the more privileged you're supposed to be.

The blurb:
Bold the ones that are true for you.

The list is based on an exercise developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. The exercise developers ask that if you participate in this blog game, you acknowledge their copyright.

(I also acknowledge that this is from the USA and therefore have no idea what some of these statements mean).

Father went to college
Father finished college
Mother went to college
Mother finished college
Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers (I assume social class)
Had more than 50 books in your childhood home (most were my mum's recipe books!)
Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
Were read children's books by a parent
Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18
Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18
The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively
Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs half (what does 'costs half' mean?)
Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
Went to a private high school
Went to summer camp
Had a private tutor before you turned 18
Family vacations involved staying at hotels
Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18
Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
There was original art in your house when you were a child
Had a phone in your room before you turned 18
You and your family lived in a single family house (most of the time)
Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
You had your own room as a child (under 12? No)
Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course (I assume this is HSC equivalent)
Had your own TV in your room in High School
Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College (have no idea what this is)
Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16 (how else would we visit the rellies in Malaysia?)
Went on a cruise with your family
Went on more than one cruise with your family
Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family (I don't know about 'heating' specifically but I knew what the gas and electricity bill was, which included everything from cooking to lights, fans and TV use as well as our gas heater and electric heaters)

Hmm, seems I'm not very 'privileged'. I think I am. My parents made a huge effort to pay off their house and send me to uni because they thought those were the most important things - who cares about having a phone/TV in your own room? Bah!

Population 1

So I went to Chromeo at the Beck's Bar (Hyde Park Barracks) last night. I went by myself because no one else wanted to go with me but I met three people I knew; my flatmate's brother and two people I used to work with (separately). Makes me think this town is getting too small.

Insert usual grumblings about crowds, drunk people, smokers, being spilled on, being a thoroughfare and people who push in front of you to claim a dance spot (when you've been dancing in the same space for hours) then glare at you when you don't move into the non-existent space behind you.

People suck. I just wanna dance sometimes. Even if it is Monday night.

Here's 2008

Sydney goes off, as usual.

There's no other place I'd rather be on New Year's Eve. It's summer time (party time) here and as far as I know, Australia are World Pyro Olympics champions. (Actually, I don't think the same company who won that comp does the Sydney display but we're very good in general especially considering fireworks are banned here). (Just found out that Foti are the people who do Sydney's NYE).

Happy New Year everyone!