Which 1980 stage play starred David Bowie as Joseph Merrick?

Which 1980 stage play starred David Bowie as Joseph Merrick? The Elephant Man.

David Bowie took over the role of Merrick in Bernard Pomerance's stage play The Elephant Man during its 1980 run. The character is called John Merrick in the play, although he was based on the real Victorian London figure Joseph Merrick, widely known as the “Elephant Man.”

The play first premiered in 1977 and reached Broadway in 1979. Its unusual staging does not require elaborate prosthetic makeup: the actor playing Merrick conveys his physical condition through movement and performance. Bowie’s casting brought major public attention to the production and connected his theatrical interests with his growing reputation as an actor.

The title can be confused with David Lynch’s 1980 film The Elephant Man, which starred John Hurt, not Bowie. Bowie’s performance belonged to the stage production, and he played Merrick for several months in late 1980. The play focuses on Merrick’s relationship with surgeon Frederick Treves and on questions of dignity, exploitation and what society considers “normal.”