Spectacular London Return Of ABBA After 40 Years

“With no tune or a dance what are we?”

With 400 million albums offered worldwide, 17 primary hits and a relentless 16 million weekly world streams at this time, ABBA are the world’s most profitable music act of all time after The Beatles. Their huge viewers crosses all generations, as evidenced by the over one billion views on TikTok in 2022. Now, for the primary time since their remaining live performance in Tokyo in 1982, the well-known Swedish pop group have reunited for ABBA Voyage, an ongoing collection of gigs of their very personal ABBA Enviornment at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London. All 4 ABBA members, Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad greeted followers on the opening night time of ABBA Voyage this week to see their revolutionary new live performance which reveals them performing their best hits as extraordinarily lifelike digital avatars, with a ten-piece reside band, together with three backing singers.

The group’s each day live shows are in a state-of-the-art, 3,000 individual capability enviornment in east London, constructed specifically for ABBA. Tickets are on sale for the following yr however with a 4 yr lease on the location, there’s clearly an expectation of an excellent longer run. And judging from the enthusiastic response within the first week and brisk gross sales for months forward, this seems to be simply achievable.

The long-awaited live performance incorporates a setlist of 21 of ABBA’s greatest, hottest hits. The digital variations of the 4 members of ABBA have been created following months of motion-capture and efficiency strategies with the band and a 1,000-strong staff from legendary VFX firm, Industrial Light & Magic, the corporate based by George Lucas, of their first musical mission. Earlier big-name productions embody The Batman, No Time to Die and Black Widow. Over ten million pc hours had been concerned in creating the “Abbatars.” The ILM staff began by scanning unique photographs and movie footage of the band. After observing how ABBA moved, spoke and sang in Nineteen Seventies performances, TV interviews and noting how they wore their hair and make-up, they started to create the avatars. Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Anni-Frid, now of their mid-70s, had been all intently concerned on this course of too and over 5 weeks in Stockholm, carried out each single tune individually, carrying movement seize dots and silver balls so their exact actions can be recreated of their avatars. Choreographer Wayne McGregor (The Royal Ballet, Firm Wayne McGregor, Paris Opera Ballet) labored with ABBA on motion and this was mixed with the Nineteen Seventies live performance movie footage and physique doubles to recreate among the advanced strikes.

The 95 minute live performance options ABBA re-imagined as twenty first century pop stars, with costumes designed by B Åkerlund in collaboration with designers Dolce & Gabbana, Manish Arora, Erevos Aether and Michael Schmidt. Actual costumes had been made earlier than being digitised by Industrial Gentle & Magic. Alongside their best hits, the live performance contains songs from Voyage, the band’s first album in 40 years, launched final yr to vital acclaim and reaching No. 1 in over 18 nations worldwide.

The live performance additionally options two quick movies by the award-winning visible arts collective Shynola, a story that spans two of ABBA’s basic tracks to create a narrative complementing the Voyage theme, that focuses on an inquisitive explorer Rora.

Along with Wayne McGregor and B Åkerlund, the ABBA Voyage live performance has a stellar listing of collaborators together with: Producer Svana Gisla (David Bowie Blackstar/Lazarus, Beyoncé and Jay Z for HBO, Springsteen and I), Producer Ludvig Andersson (Mamma Mia! Right here We Go Once more), Director Baillie Walsh (Large Assault, Flashbacks of a Idiot, Being James Bond, Springsteen and I), and Co-Govt Producer Johan Renck (Spaceman, David Bowie Blackstar/Lazarus, Chernobyl).

There was by no means any query that this present can be on-line reasonably than reside in a live performance corridor as ABBA had been eager that it could be a reside, shared expertise. It was important that the viewers would really feel that they’d been at an actual gig surrounded by fellow live performance goers.

So, is the know-how convincing and is it value travelling to London for? The reply is a convincing sure. It’s a outstanding accomplishment. It doesn’t really feel like hyperbole to explain ABBA Voyage as probably the most thrilling live performance you’ll get pleasure from this yr: this can be a really joyful expertise that was value ready 40 years for.

_{ABBA Voyage is now reserving in London at ABBA Enviornment, Pudding Mill Lane, London E15 2PJ till twenty eighth Might 2023. Tickets are from £21.95.}