Subject to Change – A Dance for David Bowie, a new work built on David Bowie's many stage personas, will have its UK premiere at Sadler's Wells in autumn 2028. Marcos Morau is making it for his Spanish company La Veronal.
Subject to Change – A Dance for David Bowie is the next piece from Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau and La Veronal, the company he has led since 2004. London gets it in autumn 2028, at Sadler's Wells Theatre.
The UK date is the second of three premieres. The world premiere comes first, at Les Théâtres de la Ville in Luxembourg in spring 2028. The Asian premiere follows at Bunkamura in Tokyo in spring 2029.
Sadler's Wells, Bunkamura and La Veronal are producing the work together. Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura, La Biennale di Venezia and Centro Cultural de Belém in Lisbon are co-producers.
The starting point is Bowie's habit of reinvention. Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, Halloween Jack and the Thin White Duke each had a life of their own, and each one was retired to make room for the next. The score takes Bowie's songs and his original vocals and weaves them through choral recordings from around the world, joined by the voice of singer María Arnal.
Musical direction is by Alex Röser Vatiché and Ben Meerwein of OZCUR. Silvia Delagneau designs the costumes and Max Glaenzel the set. The dancers have not been named yet.
Morau set out the idea behind the piece: "David Bowie practised a form of artistic reincarnation. Throughout his career, he created a succession of personas and destroyed each one so that the next could be born." Of the new work, he said: "Subject to Change is a work about that cycle of reincarnation. About the phenomenon itself: the act of dying and being reborn, again and again, as a way of remaining alive." He added: "It is an honour to create a new piece that takes its cue from an artist who is a great personal inspiration to me."
La Veronal has performed in more than 30 countries, Sadler's Wells among its stops. Morau was made a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture in 2023, and the German magazine Tanz named him choreographer of the year in both 2023 and 2025.
One thing for anyone planning ahead: only the seasons are fixed so far. No performance dates, prices or on-sale date have been announced for the London run.
