Following a thumbs-up from immigration, UK actor, musician and comedian Bill Bailey has announced his return to Australia with his brand new show En Route To Normal. The tour will take him around the country for 16 shows, including WA dates at Mandurah Performing Arts Centre on Sunday, October 31 and Riverside Theatre, Perth, on Monday, November 1.
Bill Bailey previously performed this show to sold out theatres in New Zealand earlier this year while he was there filming his new television series Patriot Brains, currently airing on SBS. Last in Australia in 2018, the British Comedy Award winner is a frequent visitor to Australian shores, and this will be the seventh show he has brought down under.
En Route To Normal sees Bailey pondering the questions that this moment in history has thrown up as he tries to see a way through the strange unreality of our new world. With Bailey naming the show before we had even heard of COVID-19, it has become not just a funny, heart-warming mix of stories, music and history, but a personal mission to find our way through these strange times.
Tracing lines through chaotic moments in history, Bailey seeks out parallels where human resilience and our ability to endure has got us through times of strife. Through music, songs, and memories, Bailey considers our changing priorities, the wonder of dogs, how little things can keep you on track, and rhapsodies on his new-found love of skydiving. He recounts his own experiences of dealing with isolation, ruminating the “sounds of lockdown” which led to a greater appreciation of birdsong and perhaps led to the creation of music itself, and how our reliance on technology has inspired Bailey himself to create dance remixes of video-calling ringtones.
Over the past 18 months, Bailey had the opportunity to fulfil some lifelong dreams when COVID put a halt to his relentless touring schedule. Most recently taking the dance floor by storm on the iconic reality series Strictly Come Dancing, Bill has also lent his voice to the animated film adaptation of children’s book Dragonkeeper due for release this year, and managed to find time to write a new book – Bill Bailey’s Remarkable Guide to Happiness, a collection of funny, meditative and thoughtful essays exploring the nature of happiness.
With his trademark blend of satire and surrealism, stories and dismantled jokes, crowd sing-alongs, weird instruments and musical showstoppers, it’s an opportunity to catch the legendary comedian, musician and actor back on stage.
Bill Bailey hits Mandurah Performing Arts Centre on Sunday, October 31 and Riverside Theatre, Perth, on Monday, November 1. For more info and to buy tickets head to ticketek.com.au
https://youtu.be/4wyOy3ws8cY
