Out of the Game Tour

The Out of the Game Tour was a concert tour by singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright. The tour supports his seventh studio album, Out of the Game. Beginning in April 2012, the tour has played over 100 shows in the Americas, Asia, Europe and Australasia.

Background
The tour was announced on Wainwright's official website, coinciding with the singer's album release. Behind the scenes, Wainwright married his long-term partner Jörn Weisbrodt while the singer had a break in his tour schedule. Wainwright explained his personal life would not only reflect in the album but also the tour. The singer continued to say that he would be touring less in the forthcoming years, while concentrating on being a parent.

The tour began with two rehearsal shows at Under the Bridge, a nightclub located within Stamford Bridge in London. The tour officially kicked off in Denmark. Some of the tour dates in Europe included festival appearances at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Melt! festival and the North Sea Jazz Festival.

Opening acts

 * Teddy Thompson (Europe—select dates) (New York City, Los Angeles, Melbourne— September 16)
 * Krystle Warren (Europe—select dates) (Oakland, San Diego, Melbourne—September 15)
 * Adam Cohen (North America—select dates)
 * Megan Washington (Australia)
 * Ingrid Michaelson (Vienna, Boston, Nashville)
 * Lucy Wainwright Roche (Nashville)

Tour dates

 * Festivals and other miscellaneous performances


 * This concert was a part of the "Sundance London Music and Film Festival"
 * This concert was a part of "San Miguel Primavera Sound"
 * This concert was a part of "Optimus Primavera Sound"
 * This concert was a part of "Luminato"
 * This concert was a part of "Love Over and Over: The Songs of Kate McGarrigle"
 * This concert was a part of the "Festival International de Jazz de Montréal"
 * This concert was a part of the "Montreux Jazz Festival"
 * This concert was a part of the "North Sea Jazz Festival"
 * This concert was a part of "Les Ardentes"
 * This concert was a part of the "Colours of Ostrava"
 * This concert was a part of the "Melt! festival"
 * This concert was a part of the "Latitude Festival"
 * This concert was a part of "Concerts on the Green"
 * This concert was a part of "Salomé Music Festival"
 * This concert was a part of the "Brisbane Festival"
 * This concert was a part of the "Austin City Limits Music Festival"


 * This concert was a part of "Timbre: Rock & Roots"
 * This concert is a part of the "West Coast Blues & Roots Festival"
 * This concert is a part of the "Byron Bay Bluesfest
 * This concert was a part of "The Current Sessions"
 * This concert was a part of the "Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts"
 * This concert was a part of the "Shakespeare Slam"
 * This concert is a part of the "Dresden Music Festival"
 * This concert is a part of the "Glastonbury Festival"
 * This concert is a part of "Festival Cruïlla"
 * This concert is a part of "Nuits de Fourvière"
 * This concert is a part of the "Stimmen-Festival"
 * This concert is a part of "Les Francofolies de La Rochelle"
 * This concert is a part of "EDP Cool Jazz"
 * This concert is a part of the "Dubrovnik Summer Festival"
 * This concert is a part of the "Verbier Festival"
 * This concert is a part of "Struny Podzimu"


 * Cancellations and rescheduled shows

Critical reception
The tour was met with mixed reviews from music critics. For the first North American concert in New York City, Jon Pareles (The New York Times), felt the concert was a nice blend of Wainwright current and past songs. He continues to say "At times there was friction between Mr. Wainwright's long melody lines and the shuffle and strut of their settings. But his supposed turn to pop isn’t a drastic change; older songs like 'April Fools' and 'Greek Song' showed he has been in that territory before".

The show was also praised by Simon Vozick-Levinson (Rolling Stone). He says "But for the most part, this was a night of pure pop joy. Afterward, he took a deep bow, accepted a bouquet from someone in the front rows—his second of the night—and walked offstage with a delighted grin". For the concert at the Ronit Farm Amphitheater, Rachel Marder (The Jerusalem Post) felt Wainwright channelled Elton John. She writes, "The show felt like a true ensemble performance, with the saxophone-player, clarinetist, drummer and backup singers all taking solos".

In Louisville, Selna Frye (louisville.com) thinks the singer gave a stellar night of song. She comments, "As entertaining and musically rich as this show was, one primary thing I came away with—and maybe others did too—was an appreciation of Wainwright's unselfishness in giving these other fine artists their moments in the spotlight". At the Chicago show, Megan Ritt (Consequence of Sound), stated Wainwright was a "consummate performer". She goes on to say "The rarities he played certainly will stick with long-time fans, but the most impressive feature of the show was how the sometimes somber Wainwright appeared to enjoy the experience as much as the audience". At the Pabst Theatre in Milwaukee, Piet Levy stated, "His gorgeous operatic croon, heard alone, essentially served as the light".

The concert at the famed Sydney Opera House received a less favorable review. Iain Shedden (The Australian) writes that following a magnificent show, Wainwright ended it like a "high school end-of-term pantomime". He further explains, "The 90 minutes was a near-perfect blend of pop smarts and raw emotion, of which the singer seems to have an unlimited supply. The encore, however, was a horror of such significance, it threatened to undo everything that came before". At the Vicar Street in Dubin, Lauren Murphy (The Irish Times) gave the show three out of five stars. She writes, "Roving the aisles singing 'Gay Messiah', his intention to entertain is acknowledged—but another two or three songs in place of the pantomime-style silliness would have been more heartily appreciated. It's an unfortunate end to an otherwise stirring show".

Band
Source:
 * Keyboard: Andy Burton
 * Guitar: Sharief Hobley and Teddy Thompson
 * Bass guitar: Brad Albetta
 * Drums: Ben Perowsky
 * Horns: Tim Ries
 * Supporting vocals: Charysse Blackman and Krystle Warren