#AbbaVoyage is it fun or is it scary ?

The other day I went to Abba Voyage with my friend Jo.

This is my take.

First of all what it is it? This is the blurb :-

Blending cutting-edge technology, spectacular lighting, and some of the most beloved songs ever written, ABBA take to the stage in a whole new way. In a stunning, purpose-built arena, one of the most popular groups in history appear as digital avatars in a ‘ground-breaking’ (Metro) concert that really ‘needs to be seen to be believed’.

The Abba Voyage theatre is in Docklands near the Olympic Park. It is easy to get to. Jubilee Line Tube to Canary Wharf. DLR to Pudding Mill Lane station. The Arena is right outside. If you are staying over use Snoozebox as a cheap hotel option set up right outside the arena (don't miss the after party disco.) The rooms are fitted out shipping containers.

Take one - Abba Voyage is a show - a concert. It is great fun. In almost every respect you are watching Abba live. The avatars (holograms) are so real and life like and convincing it is not long before you think you are watching real people perform. When they first appeared I said to Jo that is not Avatars it must be a tribute band. Of course it was avatars.

If you like Abba - this is Abba. The marginally cheaper tickets are on the dance floor. That is the place to be. The music is infectious and there is 90 unbroken minutes of it finishing with the brilliant Dancing Queen.

Take two - at the same time I am spooked! It is truly odd. The weirdest part was at the end. The audience clap wildly and call for encores. Abba dutifully respond - walk back on stage. deep bows and  perform again. The audience clap and cheer madly. I have no doubt the boundaries between real and avatar were merged in most peoples minds. So what does it matter - it is only a show - only for entertainment.

Some time ago now I read a book called The Future. It was a well received book written by Al Gore. One paragraph I particularly remember. He said there will be more changes in the next 50 years than in  the last 50 years. I have lived through the last 50 years so  I know firsthand how great and far reaching those changes have been. Computers, the internet and mobile phones to name but three.

What possibly can come along in the next 50 years to trump those developments. Well we are starting to hear about AI. The other is the "metaverse" - even though I am not sure what it actually is. I do know the Facebook holding company renamed itself  Meta - as Mark Zuckerberg stated - because Meta more accurately describes where Facebook is heading.

What is the Metaverse? From Wikipedia :-

In science fiction, the metaverse is a hypothetical iteration of the Internet as a single, universal, and immersive virtual world that is facilitated by the use of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) headsets.In colloquial usage, a metaverse is a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social and economic connection. In scientific research, it is defined as 'a three-dimensional online environment in which users represented by avatars interact with each other in virtual spaces decoupled from the real physical world'.

Did you understand that - I am not sure I did - ha !!

Many years ago I remember a Star Trek episode where Kirk and his crew finally found the supreme being - or was it God? Anyway it consisted of a huge brain on a plinth and under a glass dome. The body had been jettisoned as not needed. The world - the universe - came to the mind!

Is that where it is heading? The world can be created in our living rooms. Already I have read young Japanese men have cyber girlfriends.

I suppose none of this comes as any surprise to many people - especially younger people - because I have never played computer games for instance.

However at even my badly informed level I can see the potential of avatars and the impact they might have in the future.

Its happened with Abba in London. Who will be next - the Beatles with John Lennon - Elvis making a comeback.

What I can see is the blurring or real and virtual - of true and false. Manipulation.

I am not a conspiracy theorist - but I know a bit about fake news and the use of algorithms.

One thing in my mind is sure. From here on in it will be increasingly difficult to determine real from fake. The world is becoming ever more complex. That is a scary prospect I think - but Abba Voyage is a fun night out for sure - real or not. 

 

xxxxxx