MORE ABBAWORLD: SYDNEY
ABBAWORLD opened at the Powerhouse Museum in my hometown of Sydney on Thursday 16 December, with a spectacular opening night concert in front of an audience of over 850 people.
A huge sign spelling out ABBA in lights greeted guests as they entered the museum. The long narrow foyer was decorated with tinsel curtains down each side, with a stage at one end and giant video screens at both ends, showing ABBA videos and still pictures, as well as projecting the action on stage. The night was hosted by comedienne Julia Zimero, who hosts the Eurovision Song Contest broadcast on Australian TV and also originated the Eurovision tribute stage show Eurobeat.
Three local artists performed the songs of ABBA in their own unique styles. The concert opened with Katie Noonan, singing ‘Dancing Queen’, ‘The Winner Takes It All’ and ‘Fernando’ in a jazz chanteuse style. The exhibition was then declared open with a video interview with Björn by entertainment reporter Richard Wilkins, filmed a week earlier, followed by the "Welcome to ABBAWORLD" film by Jonas Åkerlund. Guests then had a chance to view the exhibition before the rest of the evening's activities.
The night progressed with an ABBA trivia quiz hosted by Zimero, dressed in a replica of Frida's 'Waterloo’ costume. Fan club member Roxanne, her friend Trudy and I competed with some simple and some tricky ABBA questions - watch the video to see the fun and find out who won! (part 1, part 2).
The quiz was immediately followed by up-and-coming indie artist Andy Bull, performing ‘Waterloo’, ‘Knowing Me, Knowing You’ and ‘Mamma Mai” in a minimal style with keyboard and guitar accompaniment. The night climaxed with a full-on gender-bending rave from theatrical performer iOTA, who ended the night with rocking performances of ‘SOS’, ‘Ring Ring’ and 'So Long'.
The only celebrity spotted in the crowd was Olympic diving gold medallist Matthew Mitcham. Unlike most opening night events with C-list celebrities and event sponsors soaking up free booze and canapés, tickets to the concert were available to the public, which made for a more exciting evening.
ABBAWORLD has been extensively reworked for Sydney, both for space constraints and to fit in with the Powerhouse style of an immersive experience. Rather than a chronological trip through ABBA history, as it was in London, Melbourne and Györ, the exhibition is arranged in various themed areas.
ABBA Performs introduces visitors to ABBA on stage and TV, with the costumes, photographs and videos of ABBA on tour. Behind the Scenes takes a look backstage at costume design, dressing room, and interviews with the crew that worked with ABBA. Australia Adores ABBA features memorabilia, newspapers and TV interviews from the ABBAmania experience in the 1970s.
The ABBA Sound takes the visitor into the Polar Music Studio, and they can also try their hand at the Tretow Mixing Challenge, ABBA Sing-along, and joining the ABBA avatars on stage. Sweden Goes Pop tells the story of ABBA's rise from the 60s, and here we meet the members of ABBA and manager Stig Anderson in interviews and television performances. Also here visitors are transported to Björn and Benny's songwriting cottage on the island of Viggsö. Finally The ABBA Legacy looks at the members after ABBA, the ABBA revival, Mamma Mia! and The Last Video, and ABBA's influence on contemporary pop.
Another different feature of ABBAWORLD Sydney is having ABBA fans working as volunteers, to help guests, answer questions or just to talk with visitors about ABBA. ABBAWORLD has been a huge success in Sydney, with over 700 visitors per day in the weeks after Christmas.
There is a blog post quoted on the wall "There is nothing more Australian than an unhealthy relationship with ABBA." Perhaps that's true, but we love it!
The Official International ABBA Fan Club Magazine # 106 March 2011
