Brown Butterfly - Ali's Life Through Music, Dance, and Multimedia Presentation

Louisville, KY (March 3, 2004)-- On Saturday, April 10 th , at 8:00 p.m., a talented cast of dancers and other artists will present Brown Butterfly at the Brown Theatre in Louisville. Presented by the Kentucky Center, this stunning mix of sound, movement, live music and multimedia spectacle, pays tribute to the astounding life of Louisville's own, Muhammad Ali.  

Howard Bingham, highly acclaimed photographer and close personal friend of Ali's for over 40 years, will be conducting a pre-show lecture 45 minutes before the show at the Brown. Bingham will offer insights into the man with whom he has traveled the globe and photographed, and help the audience draw relevant connections between Ali's life and the artistic impressions of Brown Butterfly.

 In addition, Jeff Julian, a documentary photographer who first met Ali in the 1970's and photographed him at his Deer Lake Training Camp, will have some of his work on exhibit that evening.   Julian, who photographed the image on the Ali Center's 2004 edition poster, will be in attendance, as well.

More About Brown Butterfly

The New York Times called Brown Butterfly "a monumental production" and the Village Voice described it as "a knockout."   The production is about 80 minutes in length with seven musicians and six dancers.

Brown Butterfly celebrates the essence and spirit of Muhammad Ali and presents the power of a man who, through controversy, adversity and triumph became an American icon.   During the complex racial, social and political environment of the sixties and seventies, Ali became a beacon of hope for some, and an object of scorn for others.  

Audiences will experience Ali through the aesthetic of his stunning physicality and strength, his ironic gesture, his quick verbal jab, and his pulsating rhythm. Brown Butterfly examines the man and his impact against the backdrop of a tumultuous period.

About The Cast