ABBA Voyage
London, UK • Ongoing
A cultural and technical marvel, ABBA Voyage is a virtual concert residency with a hybrid of live and digital elements melded so seamlessly that it must be experienced in order to be believed.
Opened in 2022, the project is a new kind of technologically enhanced concert: one not mediated by holograms or headsets, but comprising a live environment—with real musicians, lights, and the rest— in which avatars of ABBA put on a show for the ages. Lovingly referred to as “ABBAtars,” these versions of Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad have been recreated as they were at the height of their stardom in 1979. To create them, the prestigious VFX company Industrial Light & Magic had the band perform in motion-capture suits while 160 cameras scanned their faces and bodies in exacting detail. Supplemented with movement from younger actors to replicate ABBA’s youthful dancing and de-aged vocals, the computer-generated models leap over the uncanny valley to look completely real, down to every last sequin and strand of hair.
The ABBAtars perform exclusively in the specially designed ABBA Arena, where they appear on an ultra-high-definition screen that is completely invisible to the audience. Great pains have been taken to ensure the illusion is never broken through the entire 90-minute performance: every sightline from the seats and dance floor has been meticulously evaluated; every beam of light produced in the real arena is calibrated to translate into the ABBAtars’ virtual world so there’s never a break in continuity even when the lasers are flashing and the disco ball is turning; and a 10-piece “hero band” provides live accompaniment so the experience is sonically indistinguishable from a real concert.
The combined effect of all these carefully crafted elements is a verisimilitude that defies reason. Your senses tell you that the band is in front of you, performing live. The easy suspension of disbelief makes you— and the rest of the crowd— feel not like you’re watching a recording of an ABBA concert, but like you’re at an ABBA concert. For all intents and purposes, you are: the thrum of live music; the audience’s energy as you collectively belt out Dancing Queen and dance like it’s the height of disco; the heart and soul of the band captured in their creative contributions to every aspect of the show—ABBA may not be physically there, but through the magic of technology and shared joy, they are present.
With an incredible sell-through of 99% of its 3,000-person capacity each performance, ABBA Voyage generated £322.6 million for the London economy in just its first year. Commensurate to the economic impact is the cultural one: the show has gotten rave reviews, and with ABBA now in their seventies, it shares their legacy with concertgoers who would never have otherwise had the chance to see them perform. The success of ABBA Voyage has opened the door to a new age of avatar-enabled, location-based performances and tours that will completely revolutionize the way we create and experience live entertainment.
Details
Status
Now Showing
Location
ABBA Arena, Pudding Mill Lane, London E15 2RU
Sources : Abba Voyage
Published : November 4, 2025
