David Bowie’s Final Project Before His Death Has Been Revealed

Of course, David Bowie‘s final project was musical in nature.

The legendary singer, who died in 2016 at 69 following a cancer diagnosis, released the album Blackstar days before his death that January. It turns out that Bowie had another final project in the works: a musical taking place in the 18th century called The Spectator.

The “Starman” artist’s notes outlining the musical, which were discovered locked in his study in 2016, have been donated to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

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There were various sticky notes found that were used to create the structure of the story, which were intermixed with real-life events from the time they were discovered on the walls of Bowie’s New York study.

A blue notebook labeled “Spectator,” packed with his scribbles and thoughts, was also donated.

The BBC reported that no one close to Bowie knew about The Spectator during his lifetime. However, he mused about writing for the theater in the past.

“Right at the very beginning, I really wanted to write for theatre,” Bowie previously told BBC Radio 4’s John Wilson in 2002. “And I guess I could have just written for theatre in my living room – but I think the intent was [always] to have a pretty big audience.”

The Spectator‘s title comes from a daily publication that ran between 1711 and 1712 and, at the time, reported on trends in London. Bowie had read and taken notes on many issues, seeking inspiration for his musical. “Could be a good subplot,” he labeled some essays.

Bowie was interested in the crime and punishment aspect of the time period. One particular figure he noted was a petty thief named Jack Sheppard, along with vigilante Jonathan Wild. The “Changes” singer also made note of “surgeons fighting over corpses” following a public hanging.

Another thought Bowie scribbled down was an “analogy of greed versus monarchy.” The Gordon Riots and a violent gang called the Mohocks were also part of the extensive notes.

The year before Bowie’s death, he did work on the off-Broadway production Lazarus.

He served as a writer for the jukebox musical with songs from his career, including “Changes,” “Life on Mars,” and “Heroes,” along with deep cuts “Valentine’s Day,” “Always Crashing in the Same Car,” and “This Is Not America.”

He made his final public appearance at the opening night of the show in December 2015.

Bowie’s plans for The Spectator will be available to view at the David Bowie Centre at the V&A East Storehouse in Hackney Wick starting Sept. 13.

There will be 200 items on display among the tens of thousands that are part of Bowie’s extensive archive.