The Bowie Lives show set for The Duke in East Toronto this Saturday

By KAT BERGERON

Michael Bell will perform The Bowie Lives: A Bowie Spectacular event at The Duke in East Toronto this Saturday night.

Presented by OutShout Entertainment, the performance is on Saturday, March 21 from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m, and is the opening show of the Bowie Lives’ 2026 tour. The Duke is located at 1225 Queen St. E.

Bell is the performing singer and organizer of Bowie Lives, and has had a connection to David Bowie’s music since he was 14 years old and bought the album Young Americans.

Inspired by Bowie’s career, Bell took inspiration from Bowie’s showmanship. In the 1980s Bell performed in a tribute show, but then left performing for a long hiatus. During that time he was founder and publisher of The Wire Megazine.

“When David passed (in 2016), everybody came to me and suggested that I should put this together. And I didn’t really want to…I didn’t like the idea of trying to impersonate somebody else,” recalled Bell.

However, he worked with a drummer friend who put a “killer band” together and came up with The Bowie Lives which honours the music without being an impersonation.

“It’s about the music and the legacy. Sometimes it’s like one big karaoke sing-along, with the audience participation, and some people even dress up,” said Bell.

For more information on the March 21 show, please go to https://www.thebowielives.com/