A performance of David Bowie’s trippy, melancholy musical Lazarus turned into a memorial for the Thin White Duke as fans who had bought tickets to celebrate his music instead found themselves mourning his passing.
“It was incredible. I wept a lot,” said Evan Schwartz, a 20-year-old student from Stanford, Connecticut, who saw the show for a second time after winning a ticket in an online lottery. “It was beautiful.”
Tuesday night’s performance was the first time since Bowie’s death that the show went on at the 200-seat New York Theatre Workshop in the city’s East Village. Some audience members left in tears.
The only official nod to Bowie’s death was a video screen in the lobby showing a photo of the musician with the words ‘In Memoriam, 1947-2016’. Fans left flowers near the entrance.
The musical, starring Dexter and Six Feet Under actor Michael Hall, has been a hit since previews began on November 18. Bowie’s death only made tickets more desired, with a single matinée seat going on Tuesday afternoon for $1,900.
Bowie wrote the musical with Irish playwright Enda Walsh as a sequel to the 1963 novel The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis, which inspired the 1976 film of the same name that he starred in. The musical is directed by Belgian avant-garde director Ivo Van Hove.
The 18 songs in the musical include some of Bowie’s biggest hits, such as Changes, Heroes, Absolute Beginners and Life On Mars, as well as new songs like Lazarus.
There was no better way to work through grief than by music
The opaque story centres on millionaire alien Thomas Jerome Newton, who Bowie portrayed in the film. Newton, played now by Hall, has imprisoned himself in his own apartment, drinking gin, eating Twinkies, being tormented by his past and watching TV. He cannot leave – or die.
His new assistant gets sucked deeper into his world, Newton is visited by an ethereal girl who creates a rocket ship out of masking tape to take him home and he is harassed by an enigmatic, black-clad figure.
At one point, the stage is filled with white liquid resembling milk, on which some actors bodysurf. At another, it is filled with dark balloons.
The story has a recurring theme of creatures caught between worlds and the exhaustion that comes with daily survival. “I’m done with this living,” a character cries out one point, in a line that had more depth after Bowie’s passing.
The rest of the 11-member cast includes Tony Award nominee Cristin Milioti and Broadway veteran Michael Esper. There is also a video appearance by Alan Cumming.
The New York Theatre Workshop, an engine for bold works, has not been immune to such tragedy. Nearly 20 years ago to the day, playwright Jonathan Larson died on the eve of the company’s first preview of his ground-breaking Rent.
Meanwhile, Bowie’s long-time producer Tony Visconti celebrated the musician’s life with a tribute concert in Toronto, Canada, telling the audience there was no better way to work through grief than by music.
About 900 people gathered at the sold-out venue and heard the band Holy Holy, featuring bassist Visconti and former Bowie drummer Mick (Woody) Woodmansey.
The event was planned months ago as part of a tour, but sold out only after Bowie’s death.
Visconti who produced Blackstar, addressed the crowd just before the set, saying that Monday was one of the worst days of his life after he learned of Bowie’s death.