Exhibition: ABBA: Super Troupers

ABBA: Super Troupers recreates the extraordinary rise to worldwide fame and lasting legacy of ABBA (Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad), set against the shifting socio-economic and political conditions of the time.


Transforming a traditional exhibition experience, immersive guided tours include an audio narrative voiced by Jarvis Cocker and written by journalist and documentary maker Jude Rogers. Visitors (in groups of no more than 16) are transported on a journey through nine rooms recreating significant moments from ABBA’s heyday and containing over 120 archive objects from ABBA The Museum and private archives, many being shown for the first time in the UK.


ABBA’s original costumes, handwritten notes and sketches, personal photographs, music and instruments, memorabilia and film are embedded into theatrical “sets” charting the success of the global pop sensation from their individual careers to their Eurovision Song Contest win and subsequent international stardom, as they topped the music charts worldwide from 1974 to 1982. Recreations of the Brighton hotel suite where ABBA celebrated their Eurovision win, the Polar music recording studio, a Swedish forest folk park, caravans backstage at the Sydney Showgrounds during their 1977 Australian tour, a 1970s disco – and more – provide context to the evolution of their creative process and their enduring appeal, from the Mamma Mia! phenomenon to their multi-million record sales worldwide.


Against the backdrop of 1970s Britain – a financial crisis, a wave of strikes and a three day working week – and a vastly changing world, ABBA infiltrated the popular consciousness with their optimism and dominated the airwaves with their seemingly carefree pop. ABBA: Super Troupers goes beyond the surface to examine the serious stories behind the unforgettable lyrics and tunes, the band’s innovative multi-layered sound, their pioneering approach to the music video and the influence of their unique styling on successive generations.


ABBA’s relationship with the UK forms the basis for the narrative throughout the exhibition. Beginning in an early 1970s British living room typical of the era, the exhibition features examples of their UK success, from Eurovision memorabilia and fan club merchandise to hand-notated music manuscripts used by BBC musicians for ABBA’s Top of the Pops performances and puppets of the band members created by London’s Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. Despite the band’s global success, London’s Met Police declined their request to shoot the video for ‘Super Trouper’ in Piccadilly Circus, and some of the correspondence will be on show for the first time in the exhibition.


Other materials shown for the first time in the UK include personal memorabilia of the individual band members pre-ABBA: photographs of Frida taking singing lessons and a 13-year old Agnetha at the piano; doodles by Benny on show-notes from their early folk and cabaret days; and candid shots of them taken during their international tours. A school report of a then seven-year old Björn shows a B-minus grade for singing, inspiration to any visitor who then sees the gold discs also on display marking record single sales for ABBA hits ‘Ring, Ring’ and ‘Super Trouper’. Hand-painted white cowboy boots worn by Benny demonstrate the inventive nature of ABBA’s costuming, and feature alongside some of the most iconic outfits worn by the band, designed by their long-time collaborator Owe Sandström.


In a ten year career, ABBA only toured for 3 months in total, and the exhibition explores the importance of their styling, promotional shoots and music videos to connect with their international fan base. Handwritten letters from Frida and Agnetha to their fans are included, as are news clippings, tour itineraries, and scrapbooks. On a shoestring budget, the Swedish director Lasse Hallström used a variety of directorial techniques to maintain the band’s international popularity without having to leave Stockholm, demonstrated in the exhibition by an original video reel of ‘Money, Money, Money’. Highlights from their tour archive include a gold and white cape from ABBA’s 1977 Australian tour still bearing the marks of rain-stains from the torrential downpour that caused Frida to slip on stage.


Visitors will also be able to interact with musical tracks in a recreation of the engine room of the ABBA sound – Polar Studios recording studio, formed in 1978 by Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and ABBA’s manager Stig Anderson. Original archive includes Agnetha and Frida’s brown leather headphones (as seen in the video for ‘Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!’), Björn’s acoustic guitar, and mixing desks and recording equipment, giving visitors the opportunity to learn about the techniques used to create ABBA’s famous multi-layered sound.