Few artists wear their heart on their sleeve so honestly and spectacularly as Rufus Wainwright. And fewer still take the listener on an emotional rollercoaster ride of such operatic proportions.

But the Canadian-American singer songwriter has been doing it for nearly 40 years, since he was a 13-year-old appearing with his mum Kate in the McGarrigle Sisters and Family, alongside his sister Martha and aunt Anna. Now, after a five-year break, he’s back in Australia singing those majestic ballads that skewer you in your seat and tossing out his sardonic throwaway lines and off-the-cuff comments that break you up in a different way.

The trademark sideburns are now white, and there’s silver in the moustache and the still generous hair, but that tenor delivery with its slight nasal twang is as pure and powerful as ever, as he was quick to point out after calling for water then launching into the opening number Grey Clouds. “The voice is here,” he said with a relieved grin.

From left: Jeanie Pilkington, Gracie Sinclair, Rufus Wainwright and Heide Peverelle. Photo © Victor Frankowski

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