Bestselling Australian author Hugh Lunn is hoping to bring the iconic game of rugby league to the musical stage in Queensland.

A workshop reading held last Friday at Brisbane's Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) allowed industry representatives and potential sponsors to see State of Origin: The Musical for the first time.

Mr Lunn has been the driving force behind the project since writing the script and visiting festivals and theatres to gain support.

Origin greats Wally Lewis and Gene Miles are both set to be part of the project.

"It is a Queensland play and it is not for anyone else, just for us, so it has to have only Queensland songs and only Queensland actors and producers," Mr Lunn told 612 ABC Brisbane's Spencer Howson.

"The songs that have been composed I picked many from existing songs; Andrew McNaughton composed two beautiful songs that are as good as anything Andrew Lloyd Webber has written.

"What I want to show is that we have the people here to do it, Queensland's population is 5 million, it is bigger than the population of Ireland."

Mr Lunn said his plans will bring people to the theatre who had never been before and insists the production must travel regionally.

"I said it must tour Queensland or do not put it on," he said.

The well-known writer plans to capitalise on Queensland talent both on and off the stage.

"I do not think it will fail, many people told me that I can't have only Queensland composers, David Bently from Kangaroo Point has two songs in it," he said.

"He wrote 'In a Broken Dream' which was number one in Europe for 10 weeks with Rod Stewart singing."

Allan Langer and Wally Lewis in action for the Maroons in the State of Origin on May 30, 1990 in Sydney. ( Getty: Tony Feder )

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Mr Lunn said people would be surprised at the storyline, with love being a strong theme.

"The main thing about it [the play] is the way that men communicate their feelings with each other, anyone who eventually sees this play will find out how men open up to each other," he said.

He hopes that by breaking conventions, a new Australian style of musical can be performed.

"We are so used to Oklahoma, The Lion King, South Pacific and they fly them in and then get a local television star to appear on the stage to get publicity," he said.

"There are rules and traditions with musicals, like they have conventions where they only have two typed pages of dialogue back and forth, then there is a song and there are no heroic speeches.

"But I have some heroic speeches, while I have compromised in areas, I have kept a few heroic speeches."

Mr Lunn said collecting the stories from the field had been part of the driving force behind the script.

"I have had Wally Lewis telling me stories one day and another day we saw each other at the grocery store and we talked more there," he said.

"Ron McAuliffe [QRL President] got me to sit next to him at the first State of Origin, it has been great.

"We just have to hope that I get through qualifying."