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Getting cozy with Rufus Wainwright

Ah, there’s nothing like hanging out on a Friday afternoon in Laurel Canyon with your celebrity friends. While I was only there virtually and it did cost me 20 bucks, for an hour I felt as close as social distancing will allow to singer-songwriter

Rufus Wainwright, actress Jaime Lee Curtis and Curtis’ spouse, filmmaker Christopher (“Best in Show”) Guest. Throw in a couple of side musicians and bingo, you’ve got a party.

Wainwright’s been creative and then some during these pandemic times, performing from his home while wearing a bathrobe during his “IGTV Quarantine Robe Recitals” and premiering a new album live from Hollywood’s Paramour Estate. In his new “Rufus-retro-wainwright-spective!” he’s performing each of his nine studio albums, one side at a time, from the cozy digs of his living room.

I joined the festivities last Friday, when Wainwright, playing both piano and guitar, rendered the first half of his 1998 debut album, “Rufus Wainwright.” It includes my favorite of all his tunes, “April Fools.” (He called it “one of my greatest possible hits.”) Curtis and Guest, each masked and f lopped on a sofa nearby, offered applause and chatted back and forth with Wainwright between songs. At one point, a Wainwright childhood reminiscence told to (and about) Curtis got a little too TMI, but then the ambience of the home show is loose and ultra-casual. Whether this insider experience is all worth the $20 (or $25 the day of the show) hinges on your admiration for Wainwright’s songcraft. I don’t know that I’d spring for another show myself. If you’re interested, the next at-home performance is this Friday at 2 p.m. Pacific Time. Wainwright will render the second side of the “Rufus Wainwright” album. rufuswainwright.com