Rufus Wainwright and Family Ready for London Holiday Concert

Posted on Dec 2nd 2009 2:00PM by Steve Baltin
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Rufus Wainwright and other members of his clan will celebrate Christmas in London this year when the family brings their annual holiday show to Royal Albert Hall on Dec. 9. As has been the case in past years when the likes of Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson made cameos, this year's gig promises to be another spectacular affair. In fact, even Rufus doesn't quite know what to expect. "There are amazing guests," he tells Spinner. "In fact, I'm a little frightened by how many superstars might come because there are going to be surprises guests who I won't mention."

Whoever the Wainwrights bring out will join an impressive already announced lineup. "There are incredible people, like Guy Garvey from the band Elbow, who I'm such a huge fan of and also Boy George, who is a dear friend and just a god in my opinion," Rufus says. "Then there's Ed Harcourt and of course the magnificent Thompsons, Linda, Kenny and Teddy, and the list goes on."

With the show taking place in London after being held in New York last year, are there any plans for another Stateside concert in 2009? "No, we only do it once. We want to keep it special and momentous and also get it out of the way," Rufus says, laughing. " I still want to have a nice Christmas with my family and not argue over soundcheck time."

The family will have a lot to celebrate too as sister Martha is pregnant and their mother, folk singer Kate McGarrigle, is doing well in her battle with cancer. That things are going so well for the family right now is helping Wainwright juggle his opera 'Prima Donna,' 'Live in Milwaukee' DVD and new album that's currently being recorded. On top of that, Rufus is benefitting from exercise, eating right and a good relationship.

"I work out four times a week, try to eat as many vegetables as possible, I have an incredible boyfriend, who is a both a looker and a cooker, and so everybody is on a really firm plateau right now," he says. "My mother's health is much improved and my sister's about to have a baby, so we're in a good place right now. It requires constant maintenance and overhaul occasionally, but things are OK and we're just rolling along. That'll all change at some point, but for right now we're a well-oiled machine."