Comedian and musician Bill Bailey brought his stage show Vaudevillean to the Swansea Building Society Arena on Saturday night, where he took aim at Russell Brand during the performance.
The 61-year-old entertainer entered the stage from a velvet-curtained box, flicking through the pages of a bible in a nod to Brand, who was recently convicted of rape and sexual assault and faces sentencing on Monday. Bailey told the crowd: "If thou is a wrong-un, they will be banged up."
Trump and Musical Antics
Donald Trump also featured in the material of the former Strictly Come Dancing winner, with Bailey using quotes from the US president to feed into a song performed on a mixing board.
The staging was designed in a vaudevillean aesthetic to evoke nostalgia of old theatre, with Bailey performing on an assortment of exotic-stringed instruments from the vaudeville era, including the oud and the Nyckelharpa, a traditional 14th-century Swedish keyed violin.
Unique Performances and Crowd Favourites
Bailey used the lesser-known instruments to demonstrate his unique blend of music and comedy, taking requests from the crowd and performing the likes of Deep Purple's Smoke On The Water with only a moment's notice. Metallica's Enter Sandman was also performed on a banjo in 'hillbilly style'.
The show also included off-the-wall routines, such as a song combining yodelling and embalming, and a song about 'praying for a new ice age', as he told tales of the strange and unusual.
The jokes landed all night for the star, known for his role in TV series Black Books, with raucous laughter heard throughout the auditorium. Despite the loosely-structured nature of the show, Bailey kept his audience on side throughout.
Cardiff Date Ahead
The show concludes with what Bailey referred to as the 'horns of rock', rows of French horns used to perform well-known hits, alongside a unique drum, guitar and vocal performance in the second half.
Bill Bailey will return to Wales later this month as Vaudevillean is performed at Cardiff's Utilita Arena on Sunday, November 15. Tickets are still available.
