Former heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson has teamed up with famed director Spike Lee to announce Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth, a one man show on Broadway starring Mike Tyson to the Longacre Theatre for six nights only, July 31 to Aug. 5 in New York.
The show will depict the trials and tribulations of the retired heavyweight champio’s life as well as mark Tyson’s and Lee’s debut on Broadway. The show made its debut in April for a weeklong run at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“I’m very vulnerable and I’m just telling you who I am and where I’m from and how this happened,” Tyson said at a news conference at the Longacre
Tyson, like Lee a Brooklyn native, became the youngest-ever heavyweight champion in 1986, when he won his title as a 20-year-old. His life since then has been marred by accusations of domestic violence, rape and drug use.
“It takes courage to get in the ring,” said Lee, who urges theatergoers to have an open mind when it comes to the work. “But it takes courage to get on the stage.”
Tyson, 46, said he was inspired to do a one-man show after watching Chazz Palminteri tell stories about growing up in his show “A Bronx Tale.” The boxer said: “I’m really just excited about this genre here.”
Tyson said that the show would be “raw” and “filthy” and that he would show his vulnerable side. It will include tales about his stormy marriage to actress Robin Givens, his time in prison, his relationship with his trainer and surrogate father, Cus D’Amato, and the time he spent in a psychiatric clinic as a result of his addiction to cocaine. One story sure to return is one in which he spotted Givens returning to her home in his car with Brad Pitt. The pair will start work on it after the July Fourth holiday.
“It’s a great story and he tells it masterfully,” said Lee, who calls it a tale of redemption that only needs some tweaking from the Vegas edition. “He’s lifted himself off the canvas.”
