Bowie's Art of Reincarnation Inspires New Dance

An international dance production, "Subject to Change: A Dance for David Bowie," is set to premiere in Luxembourg in autumn 2028, with a later staging at Sadler's Wells in London and a visit to Tokyo in 2029. Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau is drawing inspiration from David Bowie's legacy of artistic transformation, viewing change as central to the artist's identity. The production will explore how Bowie "practised a form of artistic reincarnation," moving through personas like Aladdin Sane and the Thin White Duke.

Morau intends to weave choral arrangements of Bowie's songs with global vocal traditions and the voice of singer Maria Arnal. He aims to explore how Bowie's music evolves when detached from its original voice, transforming a personal artistic vision into a collective, cross-cultural experience. The production's creative team includes set designer Max Glaenzel and costume designer Silvia Delagneau, with musical direction by Alex Röser Vatiché and Ben Meerwein.

Previous dance works have successfully incorporated the music of artists like Black Sabbath and The Who, attracting new audiences. "Subject to Change" follows this trend, aiming not to replicate Bowie but to explore the enduring life of his art through transformation. Morau is particularly fascinated by Bowie's physicality and how he inhabited space, turning his body into a "territory of fiction"—an act of defiance against categorization.