A newly opened high-tech Elvis Presley show in London has been blasted by fans as 'a shambles from start to finish' after it failed to deliver a promised AI hologram of the King. Elvis Evolution, which launched on July 18, charges up to £300 for a super VIP ticket, but disappointed attendees claim the experience is little more than a video compilation.
Tracey Baldwin told the BBC: 'It was a shambles from start to finish, there was no Elvis, it was just a video of him that you could watch on YouTube.' She added that she felt the show's creators had 'taken us for a fool by scamming us with technology that we won’t understand'. The show was initially announced in January 2024 with a life-sized digital Elvis hologram promised as the centrepiece.
A spokesperson for Layered Reality said the concept had evolved since the initial announcement, and that tickets made clear the change when they went on sale in October 2024. 'We ultimately took the creative decision not to mimic Elvis’s performances,' they said. 'Instead, we use AI to upscale archive footage.' They added that the show had been praised by many fans.
The experience features live actors guiding guests through Elvis's childhood and career in themed sets including a train carriage and a diner, with a Hawaiian bar interval featuring a cardboard cut-out of the star. The finale recreates his 1968 comeback special as a projection onto a back wall, accompanied by live musicians.
Superfans Linzi Naldrett and Zoe Finch described the show as 'bizarre', with Linzi noting: 'All it is is a projection on the back wall of the 1968 show, which you can buy on DVD or watch on iPlayer.' She added that she left before the afterparty, feeling 'second hand embarrassment for the actors'.
