Letting a little Judy into your life can do wonders. Montreal-bred, New York–based troubadour Rufus Wainwright learned this last year, when he received some of the best notices of his career for his restaging of Judy Garland’s historic 1961 Carnegie Hall concert. That ex­peri­ence—which Wainwright himself dubbed “the gayest night ever”—also gave him a renewed sense of purpose. Release the Stars (2007), recorded in Berlin with British folk-rocker Richard Thompson and the Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant, is his strongest album to date. Just as Wainwright’s florid chamber pop extravaganzas are energized by heretofore unheard elements of rock and R&B, his witty, confessional lyrics also boast a refreshing directness. Here, the flamboyant singer-pianist on his new music and attitude.

How did your immersion in Judy Garland’s repertoire influence your own music?

I became aware of the fact that it’s deathly important that people understand the lyrics when I’m singing them. People did care a lot more about words back then. Doing those shows also freed me: if you’re not at the piano or the guitar for two hours, you have to use the stage. That gave me the opportunity to attack the audience with my expert body moves. One reviewer described me as a tap dancing showgirl, which is totally erroneous.

You originally intended Release the Stars to be just piano and voice. Instead, it’s got choirs, brass and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. How did it end up sounding so huge?

That idea collapsed like a house of cards the minute I arrived in Germany and started wearing lederhosen, eating sausages and visiting baroque castles. I was struck by this tsunami of romanticism. Plus, it was foolish of me to think that once given the reins to produce my own album, I could all of a sudden become an angry, heterosexual minimalist. So the floodgates opened.

In one of the quieter moments on the album, you sing that you’re “tired of writing elegies.” Do you think Release the Stars reflects a pluckier attitude?

This album is definitely about action. That’s the call in society in general these days. Maybe it’s just my generation, but being 33 and of sound mind and body, I’m keenly aware that if something is going to happen, it’s got to be now, whether it’s having a boyfriend or saving the planet or going to the gym. There is no more time to just think about stuff.

Rufus Wainwright plays The Music Hall, June 11 and 12. $37.50. 147 Danforth Ave., 416-778-8163, www.danforthmusichall.ca