On Friday 21 November, the Metropolitan Opera Guild’s 80th Annual Luncheon presents Brava, Jessye! to salute Jessye Norman, who recently wrote about her life in a memoir titled Stand Up Straight and Sing! A perennial highlight of the opera season, the Luncheon will bring together a host of artists and other luminaries to honour the sumptuous-voiced soprano and her long and … [Read more...] about Brava, Jessye! Met Opera Guild’s 80th Luncheon salutes Jessye Norman
Rufus Wainwright
Prima Donnas: Deborah Voigt and Rufus Wainwright take on Aspen
Deborah Voigt and Rufus Wainwright will be appearing together at this year's Aspen Music Festival. Voigt will make two appearances in collaboration with Wainwright who, according to the press release, has been named “the greatest songwriter on the planet” by Elton John. She will guest with the Grammy-nominated singer at a special event The Best of Rufus … [Read more...] about Prima Donnas: Deborah Voigt and Rufus Wainwright take on Aspen
Help Julian, a 16-year-old American dancer, represent the Bolshoi in Sochi
This blog has often championed a good cause: young composers getting their first project off the ground... established composers getting a new project off the ground! Here is a very worthy cause,and an investment in the future of ballet! The young, and very talented, Julian MacKay - who comes from an astonishingly talented family of dancers - is a sixteen-year-old American who … [Read more...] about Help Julian, a 16-year-old American dancer, represent the Bolshoi in Sochi
Rufus Wainwright is raising money to record his opera Prima Donna
Rufus Wainwright has gone to PledgeMusic to raise money to fund a studio recording of his opera Prima Donna. PledgeMusic? For those who have just caught up with Kickstarter, which was launched in April 2009, it's time to turn your attention to PledgeMusic which débuted in August of the same year. It is "the most creative and interactive way for you to be part of your … [Read more...] about Rufus Wainwright is raising money to record his opera Prima Donna
Armani luxury hotel opens in Milan – close to La Scala and via Montenapoleone
Giorgio Armani opened a luxury hotel in the centre of Milan today. It is in via Manzoni, near to La Scala, the Montenapoleone shopping district, and that other great Milanese hotel Grand Hotel et de Milan where Verdi lived and composed and everyone from Maria Callas to Rufus Wainwright has stayed. Armani's new hotel will surely attract some superstar names too. Jessica Alba … [Read more...] about Armani luxury hotel opens in Milan – close to La Scala and via Montenapoleone
Rufus Wainwright’s Velvet, Glamour and Guilt at the Opera House
From the July 18 until July 23 Rufus Wainwright is taking over the Royal Opera House. Although Elton John and Björk have given concerts there already, this 'residency' is something different; a celebration of his work so far. It isn't a week of repeated concerts but a mini festival. On July 18 and 22 there's his Rufus Does Judy!, on July 19 a concert with his sister Martha, … [Read more...] about Rufus Wainwright’s Velvet, Glamour and Guilt at the Opera House
Rufus Wainwright talks to Vanity Fair about Judy and Liza
London was a big town for her. When I did the show at Carnegie Hall, there were people hating it, people sort of accepting it, people kind of [exhibiting] a general weariness of the whole situation. When I did it in London, it was across-the-board excitement and acceptance, and “This is fantastic!” It was almost like the same thing that she went through. I guess old lines … [Read more...] about Rufus Wainwright talks to Vanity Fair about Judy and Liza
Rufus Wainwright’s “Prima Donna” rejected by the Met gets snapped up by the New York City Opera
Prima Donna, the Bastille Day-set opera by Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, will make its Gotham debut in spring 2012 at the New York City Opera instead of the Metropolitan Opera, for which it was originally conceived. NYCO said on Monday that the company would produce it sometime next season. The Met and Lincoln Center Theater originally commissioned … [Read more...] about Rufus Wainwright’s “Prima Donna” rejected by the Met gets snapped up by the New York City Opera
Rufus Wainwright’s Emotional Return to Carnegie Hall
The eccentric and talented Rufus Wainwright has been touring the world during the year since his mother died. The first half of the concert is the song cycle from his CD "All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu" dedicated to her. Before the summer he performed at the Sala Verdi at the Conservatorio here in Milan, the conservatory that Verdi was famously not admitted to; … [Read more...] about Rufus Wainwright’s Emotional Return to Carnegie Hall