David Bowie’s ‘lifetime’ ban from venue lifted posthumously

By Isobel Williams

David Bowie has been welcomed back to a venue he was banned from for life 53 years ago - so an exhibition can take place.

Brighton Dome is set to host the 360° experience David Bowie: You're Not Alone on a limited run to showcase never-seen-before-exhibited material.

The show combines rare performance footage, photography, drawings, lyrics, personal notes and audio recordings.

Bowie was banned from the venue for life in 1973 after fans tore up seats during his Ziggy Stardust tour.

But Lucy Davies, director and CEO of Brighton Dome, says that the late artist has now been forgiven for the incident.

She said: "This marks a new collaboration with the mighty Lightroom and a homecoming for Bowie to Brighton Dome, after his 1973 ban!

"Over the summer of 2027 our doors will stay open for this landmark experience in our beautiful Corn Exchange, bringing something very special to the city."

The experience, from July 16 to Aug. 30, 2027, will show some of Bowie's landmark performances selected from thousands of hours of film in the vaults of the David Bowie Archive in New York.

This includes everything from Space Oddity through Diamond Dogs and Heroes.

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It was written and directed by Studio 59's co-founder and director Mark Grimmer, and was produced by immersive London venue Lightroom.

Each track in the show has been newly reconfigured by multiple Olivier and Tony Award-winning sound designer Gareth Fry, who did Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

The film is structured in thematic chapters in a looping presentation, giving a unique insight into Bowie's perspective on the subjects most important to him.

These include theatricality, spirituality, songwriting and the transformative power of creativity.

Elsewhere, there is a reconstructed set of the inimitable Diamond Dogs tour.

Grimmer said: "It says something about our relationship with artistic heroes that we're drawn to mystery, otherness, the alien... In Bowie's case, this is our construct, not his.

"Throughout his career, Bowie repeatedly resisted being figured as anything but human. Rather than undermining his mystique, we designed a show to celebrate Bowie as a champion of human creativity - focusing on the message he expressed time and again: that art, in all its forms, is our best hope for understanding what it means to be alive."

Richard Slaney, Lightroom chief executive, added: "The response to David Bowie: You're Not Alone in London has been phenomenal, and we're delighted to be able to see it open in Brighton in 2027, alongside more cities across Europe, to mark what would have been his 80th birthday.

"The show offers the chance to feel the excitement of those groundbreaking performances, and get inside the mind of one of the greats."

The production is being made in close collaboration with and authorized by the David Bowie Estate.

Tickets go on sale on Friday, Oct. 2.