In this entertainment journalism business, it is normal to have many engagements happen on the same night. So, I was forced to cancel a few other events to make room for the World Wrestling Entertainment function. I have probably lost a lot of street cred just by saying that, but after decades of watching (and, at some stage, believing), I owed it to myself to go and watch one of the most popular shows on local TV.
The big names – Randy Orton, Big Show, Brett Hart, local boy Justin Gabriel, Christian, a fake Rey Mysterio character and the hot diva Natalya – were all present to showcase their talents.
“Now remember: you may not call them wrestlers, they are superstar performers. When they are in a ring, they are not in a fight but a match. Remember this when you are speaking to them,” said the PR lady as we were being ushered into one-on-one interviews. The two wrestlers, no wait, performers that had agreed to meet us were Justin Gabriel and the breathtaking Natalya.
“We are so happy to be here. From the time we were in Cape Town it was just an amazing experience. Especially for me, as I have never been here before,” said Natalya.
After the Cape Town show, the group visited Durban, and then moved to Johannesburg last Saturday. Despite reports that their luggage was stolen, there were only Hollywood smiles at the press conference.
“Justin here has been acting as our tour guide and showing us around. We are having so much fun because South Africa is a beautiful place. We saw monkeys and South African penguins, which were great. I even bought a painting from a local artist which I think is a masterpiece,” added Natalya.
Our own local lad who is now making it big in the US, Justin Gabriel, was also thrilled to be back home, even if only for a short while.
“We are always constantly travelling and we also have to perform in the US, so there is a lot of work and little time to rest. We had to pre-record an episode back in the US to make time for this trip,” said Gabriel.
Though he wasn’t sure who he was fighting (sorry, performing against) at the time of the interview, Gabriel said it really did not matter.
“I will know about an hour before the match and I will just prepare myself mentally and physically. It is always fun not to plan too much ahead,” he added.
We settled down to enjoy the action. My seats weren’t great – the stars looked so miniscule compared to their larger-than-life on-screen performances. The stage was set-up very well, like you see it on TV, but sans the big screen – bad news for those people who had to view the action from afar. Meanwhile, the merchandise stands were cashing in while parents were aching because of the exorbitant pricing. I was one of the few adults in the arena who was not accompanying a child.
Those young WWE fans sure got their parents’ money’s worth. The fights (sorry, matches) were fantastic. The usual speeches given by the wrestlers were shorter that usual, which left more time for the explosive action. Big Show and Randy Orton were undoubtedly the crown favourites, so everyone went home happy once they had won.
Look out for the rest of the WWE action on e.tv at 5pm on weekends and on Mondays and Wednesdays at 10.30pm and 8.30pm respectively.