Hear Rufus Wainwright pay tribute to his folk-legend mom
Before the Canadian folk legend Kate McGarrigle died of cancer five years ago, she spent her final days championing Patients Canada, a fledgling quality-of-care advocacy organization. This weekend, to honour her and support the charity she helped build, McGarrigle’s son, Rufus Wainwright, is putting on a show. The maximalist baroque-pop crooner has a virtuosic vibrato and a penchant for confessional ballads, over-the-top outfits and melodramatic flourish, often accompanied by the lush arrangements of a gospel choir or an orchestra for hire. This time, as the popera performer cycles between piano, guitar and microphone, he’ll be joined by his father, prolific folk singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III, and the unsung hero of the McGarrigle-Wainwright clan, multi-instrumentalist Chaim Tannenbaum, for a reunion that’s bound to reach deep into the family’s back catalogue.
Fri. Feb. 6. $30–$100. Queen Elizabeth Theatre, 190 Princes’ Blvd., 416-263-3293, ticketfly.com.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/remember-canadian-folk-icon-rufus-wainwright/&title=Hear Rufus Wainwright pay tribute to his folk-legend mom&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/rufus-wainwright-best-bet.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_306477" align="alignnone" width="656"] Kate McGarrigle and Rufus Wainwright. (Image: Rufus Wainwright)[/caption]
Before the Canadian folk legend Kate McGarrigle died of cancer five years ago, she spent her final days championing Patients Canada, a fledgling quality-of-care advocacy organization. This weekend, to honour her and support the charity she helped build, McGarrigle’s son, Rufus Wainwright, is putting on a show. The maximalist baroque-pop crooner has a virtuosic vibrato and a penchant for confessional ballads, over-the-top outfits and melodramatic flourish, often accompanied by the lush arrangements of a gospel choir or an orchestra for hire. This time, as the popera performer cycles between piano, guitar and microphone, he'll be joined by his father, prolific folk singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III, and the unsung hero of the McGarrigle-Wainwright clan, multi-instrumentalist Chaim Tannenbaum, for a reunion that’s bound to reach deep into the family’s back catalogue.
Fri. Feb. 6. $30–$100. Queen Elizabeth Theatre, 190 Princes’ Blvd., 416-263-3293, ticketfly.com.){kind=link}