I was keenly aware that I didn't want to draw on too many typically doomed aspects of the fated singer. Whether it's Judy Garland or Norma Desmond, there is this tragic quality to older women that one can revel in, and you want it to be more three-dimensional than that. So it was important for the character to be strong and resilient, because there are so many victims in opera.
Rufus WainwrightOpera needs to be a total escape from real life. To relate to what we're going through today is fine and dandy, but it's really about being transported and completely swept away by a romantic notion.
Rufus WainwrightI have managed to eke out a good and substantial existence. I'm not shoveling gold bricks or anything, but I do very, very well.
Rufus Wainwright