Date Night: A Whole New BALL Game

Hubbster, although I love him dearly, has very different ideas about lots of things to me.

We are probably a classic example of the old adage – ‘opposites attract’.

(24 years on, and I still can’t say those two words without singing the Paula Abdul song in my head…and OMG, I sound amazing when I sing in my head!)

With this month’s date night approaching, I was hoping to do something a little bit different…and when I say different I mean different from popping to our local pub and standing beside some woman in her trackie dacks and pink bunny slippers at the bar. (Yes, that actually happened once!)

So when I opened an email last week offering me two tickets to a show in the Arts Centre in Melbourne next Thursday night, I felt like I had hit the jackpot. I had barely finished reading to the end of the message before I had my phone in my hot little hand dialling Hubbster’s number.

“Fancy going to a musical next Thursday?” I asked Hubbster excitedly.

“Um…” the line went quiet as Hubbster chose his words carefully. “No not really.”

“I’ve been invited to attend a show at the Arts Centre,” I explained.

“Oh ok,” I could hear the cogs turning, and his feet shuffling as he desperately tried to think of some excuse why he possibly couldn’t attend with me.

“Maybe you could go with one of your girlfriends?”

I couldn’t help smiling before I drew my Ace card.

“Oh okay,” I answered “I just thought you liked Warnie.”

“Huh?”

I revelled in his confusion for a second.

“I’ve been invited to attend the Shane Warne Musical, and it is meant to be hilarious.”

Suddenly our two very distinct worlds collided! Could it be possible that we could have a date night where I get to dress up and go into the city and visit a theatre (one of my favourite things to do) and Hubbster can indulge his love of all things sport…and we can do what we do best together – LAUGH! (Well, after the other thing that we do best together obviously!)

“And, you’ll never guess who is in it?”

“No, you’re right, I’ll never guess, tell me,” Hubbster replied, his enthusiasm suddenly magnified tenfold from the start of the conversation.

“It’s not Liz Hurley, don’t get too excited!”

“Oh.”

I noted the disappointed tone.

“KENNY!”

“Shane Jacobson?”

“Yeah!”

“Awesome,” Hubbster said chuckling clearly remembering all his favourite toilet-cleaning jokes from the mockumentary film Kenny.

And that, ladies, is how you throw your partner the date-night ball of the century! Even Kylie doesn’t have as much spin as me right now!

Shane Warne the Musical

So, for those of you, who think this may also be a (much-needed) date night made in heaven, here are a few details about the show.

The original, award winning production (2008) has been updated to include the years since Warnie’s retirement from Australian cricket, and to also include his relationship with Liz Hurley. So, if you saw it the first time around, you can expect the same sharp-satirical comedy, with the addition of brand new songs, and a 24 piece orchestra….and let’s face it, nothing screams dramatic atmosphere like an orchestra!

But a show is nothing without it’s cast and on that count, I am more than satisfied that theatre goers will not be disappointed. The cast is headed by Eddie Perfect as Shane Warne (currently starring in Channel 10’s Offspring) and supported by Lisa McCune (Simone Warne), Shane Jacobson (Terry Jenner) and Christie Whelan Browne (Liz Hurley).

The show promises to appeal to a wide-ranging audience, from regular theatre goers to those like Hubbster who avoid it like the plague, and everyone from die-hard sport enthusiasts (like Hubbster) to those (like me) who would rather stick a fork in their eye than witness glorious sports moments the first time around, let alone relive them twenty years later.

But whether you love him or loathe him, Shane Warne’s (albeit very public life) apparently has all the makings of a great musical drama – love, loss (of the sporting, love and hair variety), money, success, failure and fame..with more than a pinch or two of scandal along the way! Shane Warne the Musical is said to be a respectful celebration of his cricketing prowess along with a glimpse into his notorious off-field antics, that will have the audience both laughing hysterically and genuinely moved by the story of Shane Warne’s life.