Shane Warne The Musical

When we saw Wicked, across the road were signs for 'The Other Wizard Of Oz', being Shane Warne The Musical. Each time I saw the ad for this, I cringed....but then Melissa got free tickets to the preview...and you can't say no to free tickets, can you!

I met Melissa out the front of the Athenaeum Theatre. As we took our seats quite close to the stage, the producer came on stage to introduce. He said that this was the first real run of the show, with some places not fully worked out yet, and that one of the actors had only been with the group a week.

The show started out by showing that our man Warne didn't start out playing cricket, and chronicled his attempts at being a football star with St Kilda. The disappointment of dreams dashed, and his mother's influence on his getting his act together and heading to the AIS for cricket.

Some digs about an inappropriate coach over there in Adelaide, making you cringe about the possibility of reality, leading up to some words of advice for the wayward Warne until he gets his act together and gains selection for Australia.

His crowning with a baggy green got a smattering of applause from the audience - Melissa was mortified at my participation in that! Some true cricket fans out there! And then the focus on That Ball.

As the gap at interval extended, and the crowd had returned, a chant of 'Warnie, Warnie, Warnie' went up. Hilarious. Had the band cracking up!

Every crack at Warne that could be made, was made. Comments about his fast rise to fame, and that he couldn't do anything without gaining media attention, his nickname as Hollywood. The bookmaker scandal, the diuretic given to him by his Mum, sledging on field. The singing and dancing were actually very funny - with a highlight being What An SMS I'm In.

The portrayal of Shane and Simone's relationship, from start to end, with the promiscuous Warne and the 'what happens on tour stays on tour', and the sad reality of Simone's perspective. Pretty raw and real. And then the reminder that whilst the media circus went on, he did, single handedly win Australia many matches.

Very funny show, a look at the hero and disaster that is Warne. Could not have imagined going to see it, but loved it!