Lazarus

The extraterrestrial Thomas Jerome Newton comes to Earth to obtain water for his parched planet and establishes a high-tech billion-dollar company to build a spaceship for his return. However, Newton succumbs to the business and consumer world with all its pitfalls, falls in love with the Earth girl Mary Lou, and loses sight of his goal. Cynical and disillusioned, Newton ends up as just another Earth dweller. Yet he cannot age or die. With English and German subtitles, "Look up here, I’m in heaven, I’ve got scars that can’t be seen …" ("Schaut hier hoch, ich bin im Himmel. Ich habe Narben, die nicht zu sehen sind …") These are the opening lines of David Bowie's "Lazarus," the titular opening song of his eponymous musical. Striking lines. Prophetic lines. No one suspected that the premiere of the musical on December 7, 2015, in New York would be Bowie's last public appearance. He kept his serious illness a secret at that time. The exceptional artist Bowie was happy that evening to see his musical, co-written with Irish playwright Enda Walsh, on stage. It had been a long-held dream. Since David Bowie played the lead role in the film "The Man Who Fell to Earth" in 1976, the material had occupied him. The extraterrestrial Thomas Jerome Newton comes to Earth to obtain water for his parched planet and establishes a high-tech billion-dollar company to build a spaceship for his return. However, Newton succumbs to the business and consumer world with all its pitfalls, falls in love with the Earth girl Mary Lou, and loses sight of his goal. Cynical and disillusioned, Newton ends up as just another Earth dweller. Yet he cannot age or die. At this point, Bowie and Walsh continue to weave the story. Newton lives among us, spends his days in front of the television, and drinks gin. He is tormented by the demons of his past, which he tries to drown in alcohol, and mourns his lost love Mary Lou. His immortality torments him, and he longs for redemption. When a young girl, a lost soul like him, enters his life, Newton finds hope: Could she help him embark on his long-awaited journey? "Lazarus" brings together Bowie's world hits like "Absolute Beginners," "This Is Not America," and "Life on Mars?". It also features four new pieces written specifically for this musical, including the titular "Lazarus" – in total, 17 great Bowie songs define the soundtrack. Just over a month after the premiere, Bowie passed away on January 10, 2016. In hindsight, this story of the man condemned to eternal life, who longs for the afterlife, is seen as his legacy. A work that oscillates between dream and reality and philosophizes about the meaning of human existence. And about death, which is part of life. The biblical Lazarus is regarded as a symbol of resurrection. David Bowie has made himself immortal with his music anyway. A musical by David Bowie and Enda Walsh based on the novel "The Man Who Fell To Earth" by Walter Tevis | Translated by Peter Torberg.