A musical portrait of a brief but remarkable era, 1980s London. These gloriously self-indulgent years, played out against a backdrop of mass unemployment and social upheaval, sparked a rebellion among young people which ultimately found its expression in outrageous fashions and a decadent nightlife. These were the “New Romantics” – leaders of a phenomenon which left a lasting influence on both the face and fate of pop, fashion and social culture.
Taboo is a story about a young girl and boy swept up in this exciting artistic climate, a story which also focuses on two young men – Leigh Bowery, a brilliant, anarchic performance artist and designer, and George O’Dowd, a young, rough-edged boy who arrives in London and, once part of the Eighties club world, becomes the surprising crossover star of the scene, Boy George. From squat to superstardom, from rock to rock bottom, both mens’ stories are played out against the fantastic background of Taboo, the nightclub that came to symbolise the excess and decadence of 1980s London and subsequently defined a generation.
Taboo is once again directed by co-creator Christopher Renshaw and the project is also actively supported by the talents of many of the original creative team including writer Mark Davies Markham and composer/lyricist and star of the original run, Boy George.