Abba Voyage is a show based in East London, and has been running since May 2022. If like me you didn’t know anything about it until recently, then this is for you.
Questions
My first question was, “If Abba are pushing the octogenarian envelope, how are they jumping about on stage like they’re sprightly twenty-somethings?” The answer unsurprisingly is, I honestly have no idea. And that’s how Abba and George Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic (the company that brought you the special effects behind Star Wars and several thousand Marvel films) would like to keep it.
Abba & Me
I’ll be totally upfront about this: I don’t even like Abba. Admittedly, back in the 70’s when they burst onto the scene after winning the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest (a graveyard for any aspiring musician) I was a teenager, listening to rock, then punk and anything in between, so a cute little Swedish outfit singing songs my parents thought were ‘nice little toe tappers’ was never really going to cut it, was it.
However, over the years my attitude towards the Scandinavian songsters (no, they’re not all Swedish – Anni-Frid is from Norway) has mellowed somewhat and you can often see me on a Friday night out on the floor, strutting my funky stuff to Dancing Queen. Yes, I am the dancing queen – in all senses of the word.
But enough of my disco dalliances, what about Abba Voyage?
Abba Voyage – What Is It?
Well I took Vikki to see it the other night and quite spectacular it was too. So, what is “it” exactly? Well to use a phrase I read in a review, it is a show centred around Abba Avatars known as Abbatars, generated by using heavy duty CGI rendering.
Avatars?
Yes. An avatar is a virtual representation in a physical world i.e. a computer generated image.1
So that’s clear then.
How Does It Work?
It’s a bit like watching CGI in a film except it’s “live” on stage rather than on celluloid. Abba though spent five weeks in Stockholm, wearing their CGI motion-capture bodysuits, rehearsing and choreographing every move they make throughout the performance.
To all present at the purpose built Abba Arena, what this means is you’re watching the group Abba, live, on stage, as they were, in the 70’s. And you can’t see the join. The join where reality ends and computerised imagery begins. There they are, in 3D, singing and dancing…but of course they’re not actually there. It’s an illusion.
And all the while you’re sitting there saying to yourself, “Yes but they’re pushing 80 and here they are as if the intervening 50 years didn’t happen” and as your mind starts to unravel and you begin to question some of the concepts that define Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, you eventually come to the conclusion this is some magical misdirection that will eventually reveal itself.
And it’s the 180º floor to ceiling video screen that does it. Sometimes, just sometimes those big facial closeups don’t look quite right. Perhaps it’s a small thing, like their eyes don’t shine or their facial movements are a little clunky, I don’t know. There’s something that reveals the animation which underpins the whole experience. But it doesn’t detract from its verisimilitude.
What’s It Like?
The show is part pop concert, part video film, part light show and part musical theatre, all cut together to create 90 minutes of unbridled wonder. And I did wonder, at the end of the spellbinding opening song The Visitors, if Abba aren’t there, then who am I clapping?
But then there is a 10 piece live band recreating all the songs from the hit laden 70’s plus some later ones (from their 2021 album Voyage).
The show moves on, pulsing lights flashing through the audience, thousands of mini UFO’s descending from the heavens, and then onto what is perhaps the simplest, but the most striking stage setting. The song is the 1979 hit Chiquitita set to a video of a gradual eclipse of the sun.
I watched in awe as the eclipse took place throughout the duration of the song. But it wasn’t just me, when I looked at Vikki her eyes were a little misty around the edges too.
The concert continues, there is futuristic ‘video’ set changes, animation, the band take over for a song, some medley’s, costume changes, pulsating lights, special effects, thundering tunes and a nice little surprise at the end.
Where Is It?
The show takes place at the purpose built but temporary Abba Arena in Pudding Mill Lane, East London. It holds about 3000 people. There is two-tiered seating along the sides and at the back, and a big dance floor at the front, which is effectively standing room only.
Filming and photography isn’t permitted and to be fair, I can understand why. It just wouldn’t do the show justice. There are some clips online which you can view below but bear in mind when watching them, the show itself really must be seen to be appreciated.
Pudding Mill Lane is on the DLR Line for anyone wanting to go to the show. It’s on the Canary Wharf route, one stop from Stratford. There are some food vendors outside the arena and inside too but it appeared to be limited fare. Which is good if you like limited fare.
When Does The Show Run To?
The show was supposed to run from May 2022 until December 2022 but was extended to May 2023 and has now been extended again to November 2023.2
The Future?
So, is this the future of rock n roll? In 20 years from now, will we be rocking up to The Beatles Bandstand or Elvis Entertainments to see our long dead heroes back on stage as if it were Shea Stadium or the 68 Comeback Special all over again? Until I witnessed the Abba Voyage show I wouldn’t have believed it but now I’d say, anything is possible.
But don’t take my word for it, it’s an incredible show, unlike anything I’ve ever seen. And it’s worth it just for that. And the beauty of it is you don’t even need to like Abba to enjoy it. After all, that’s the name of the game.
Thank you for your time.
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- Avatar comes from Hinduism, where the manifestation of a God appears in bodily form. This doesn’t mean Abba are Gods (well maybe they are to some people) but relates to their virtual selves appearing to the audience as if in a physical form.
- ABBA residency extended through November 2023 – AM 880 KIXI