LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Teddy Abrams, conductor of the Louisville Orchestra, is tackling one of the biggest productions of his life: a musical based on Muhammad Ali.
The life and legacy of "The Greatest" will soon take shape on stage, debuting in Louisville. It's simply called "Ali."
"Muhammad Ali is one of the great icons of the world," Abrams said Tuesday. "No one had ever done a musical about his life, (so) we started looking at what that could possibly be."
A creative meeting was held Tuesday with the musical’s producer, writer and director, something Abrams said he started working on eight years ago.
"This is a brand new musical from the ground up," he said. "It is enormous. It is an enormous undertaking, something on this scale."
The Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts will be the kickoff to the musical, and the creators have a goal of landing on Broadway in spring of 2025. Clint Dyer, who wrote and directs the show, knew he wanted to help put it together here.
"If I did it in LA, I wouldn't be taking the feel of Muhammad Ali," he said Tuesday. "To try and harness that and feel the kind of support I am actually feeling at the present is incredible."
Along with original music, choreographers have signed on with resumes that include working with Jennifer Lopez, Madonna and Michael Jackson.
"To be able to teach how to walk, how to talk and how to move like someone takes deep research and a bit of sincerity and care," said Rich Talauega, the show's choreographer.
Ali’s widow, Lonnie, is working closely with the production team, making sure it is as accurate as possible.
"That is why doing it as a musical gives it another quality," Dyer said. "So the films have been brilliant, documentaries brilliant, (but) there is something about music that can take you to another place."
"I think we have all recognized what it's meant to have a hero, a global icon, from our community," Abrams added. "It is something for us to be proud of as a town."
Casting is underway now and should be announced shortly. Exact dates for the debut are still being worked out, but it will be in the fall of 2024.
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