While it’s fair to say Australians love sport, it is equally true that we’re not too crazy about musicals. And rightly so.

Eighteen months ago, comedian and composer Eddie Perfect set out to write a show that combined these disparate elements into one incredible spectacle. The result is SHANE WARNE THE MUSICAL; a full-throttle exploration of what it means to fall arse-backwards into the Australian Dream and emerge a champion. In a country that routinely lops its tall poppies, SHANE WARNE THE MUSICAL sets out to celebrate and understand the life of cricket’s most maligned and celebrated identity as he battles fame, failure, fidelity and the ferocious Australian media.

The 2008 Melbourne International Comedy Festival is host to five work in progress performances of this much-anticipated project. It’s Melbourne’s exclusive chance to see this piece in action before the unwashed hordes at the show’s official opening in December 2008.