David Bowie’s 1978 Earls Court performances are heading back to arenas as Stage, a production built from previously unseen concert film. The world premiere is set for February 14, 2027, at Berlin’s Uber Arena, in association with the 77th Berlin International Film Festival. Wonderworld is making the show with the Bowie estate and filmmaker Brett Morgen.
There is a distinction to make before booking: the performance on screen comes from 1978. This is an arena presentation of that recording, with new sound, lighting and display work around it. The announced musicians are Bowie’s touring band from the film, rather than a new band booked to play the show live.
The source material is raw 35mm footage from the Isolar II tour. Adrian Belew, Carlos Alomar, George Murray and Dennis Davis are among the players captured alongside Bowie, with Roger Powell, Sean Mayes and Simon House completing the band listed in the announcement. The repertoire brings Low and “Heroes” material into the same concert as earlier songs including “Ziggy Stardust” and “Fame”.
That combination gives the project a particular appeal. A career documentary can move between eras to tell a life story; a concert film can let us stay with one band and one period. Stage promises longer, uninterrupted takes. If those preserve the pace of a performance, the interest will be in the exchanges and transitions as well as the familiar songs. We have not seen the finished production.
Morgen found the footage while working on Moonage Daydream. Discussions about an arena version began in 2018, and Rob Hallett joined the project in 2024. Patrick Woodroffe is designing the lighting, while Paul Massey supplies the immersive audio mix. The production describes multiple transparent LED screens and a 7.1 surround system. These are plans for how the archive will occupy the room, not evidence of how every seat will sound.
For Berlin, the detailed ticket timetable separates two openings: a presale on Wednesday, October 28, and general sale on Friday, October 30. Both begin at 9 a.m. GMT, or 10 a.m. CET. For readers in Turkey, that is noon on either day. A presale opening should not be mistaken for unrestricted general availability.
The timing places Stage within the year Bowie would have turned 80. Our guide to the wider Bowie80 programme covers exhibitions and other performances offering different routes into his archive. This one keeps its focus on a working band in 1978: almost five decades later, the new element is the presentation, while the performance remains rooted in its own moment.
