Rufus Wainwright to share ‘a slice of my life’ at Scottsdale show

“I come from a long line of troubadors, whether it’s my parents or sisters, aunts and uncles,” says the ever-elegant songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Rufus Wainwright, with a tiny twinkle when I ask him how he’ll curate his upcoming show at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts on November 4.

Not breaking that process down to any sort of specifics, he continues. “There are just a lot of songs at any time that I’m inhabiting and investigating or composing and reevaluating, so what you get to see that very evening is just a slice of my actual life.”

There is a wealth of material for Wainwright to choose from. Over the years, he has blended his lush vocals with stellar composition skills to create genre-fusing music, exploring multiple styles, including Baroque pop, jazz, cabaret and folk.

He does have an idea of what the night will involve.

“I have ‘Dream Requiem,’ which is out now. That’s lovely, and I’ll sing a bit of that. I’m getting ready to make a new record, so I investigate some of those songs, and then there are the old faithfuls that the audience longs for. Maybe there will be something that day that just pops up that needs some love, and I’m ready to give it love.”

“Dream Requiem” is his 12th studio album, and that’s only one wedge of the large pie that is his career. He’s written a couple of operas, worked on film soundtracks and created music for theatrical productions.

Wainwright also has the audience in mind when thinking about how a night will go. “I like people to come to my shows often, and many do. I met a person the other day, and it was her hundredth show. I keep that in mind. I also like to make the banter unique and relevant to what’s going on in the room at that time.”

I ask Wainwright if he ever thought he’d be at a place in his career where someone would tell him they’ve seen him 100 times. The answer has a couple of layers.

“On one hand, I’m incredibly honored and overjoyed to be this successful. On the other hand, though, I work hard, and I’m traveling all the time, and I do try to make it worth the price of admission. I think my songs are worth a second or third listen,” he laughs.

In 2023, Wainwright released “Folkocracy,” an exploration of roots music that includes multiple collaborations on traditional folk songs with an array of artists, including Chaka Khan, Anohni, David Byrne, Brandie Carlile and John Legend. The vocal partnerships alone make the record rich and engaging.

I wanted to know how he decided on his list of performers to duet with.

“I have to credit a lot of that to my producer,” he says. That record was produced by Mitchell Froom, who is not only the keyboard player in Crowded House, but he’s also a well-known producer who’s worked with artists like Richard Thompson and Vonda Shepard.

“I came to him wanting to make a folk record. I came with about 50 songs that I enjoy interpreting, and I told him to choose which ones he thought would make a good record. I’d always had a dream scenario of doing something with Chaka Khan. First, because she’s such a great artist, but also because she was in a band called Rufus and Chaka Khan. I thought this combination of Rufus and Chaka Khan singing together would be fun,” he says. 

We dove a bit into how making that record affected him, or if it reframed the genre in any way. The shows where he performed the songs seem to have given him much joy. 

“They were fantastic. I had my friend Petra Haden singing with me and my sister Lucy Wainwright Roche. The band was great, too. We just had a blast. I didn’t want to tour that record to death, so we did just enough shows, and every one of them was special.”

Among the highlights, he mentions singing with the legendary Judy Collins and performing at the Cambridge Folk Festival. 

The singer has long been vocal about politics, including his feelings about Donald Trump and his policies. We discuss the weight of the current state of the world and how it factors into touring.

“Thankfully, I have one song that I can sing that very much expresses my sentiments of the moment. And there are a couple of others that are politically bent. At this point, I don’t even like to go out there and talk about it because so much of the rest of my life is talking about it, whether it’s watching the news or talking with friends or family. It takes up so much space that sometimes when I do a show, I want a break from what’s happening. Nonetheless, it’s important to touch on, and you can’t totally escape. I’m glad I have some music to lean into that’s political so I can put the message out there,” he says.

Once the tour is done, Wainwright is excited to create more music. “I am looking forward to getting into the studio to make my new album. I work in the studio a lot, so I’m preparing that cocoon,” he laughs.

“It’s the place I can evaluate and absorb all the experiences I’ve been having, which are a lot and pretty amazing.”

In between now and then, Arizona awaits.

“I’m really looking forward to it. I love coming to Arizona and can’t wait to get there.”

Rufus Wainwright performs at 7:30 p.m. on November 4 at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets start at $51.