<
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/may/01/los-angeles-willy-wonka-pop-up-experience>
"She was the sad Oompa Loompa seen around the world. Inside a bleak warehouse
in Glasgow, a supposed celebration of Wonka’s delectable world of chocolate
left children crying and parents calling the police. Attendees paid £35 to
visit a bleak warehouse with a handful of props and posters; inside, they were
treated to two jellybeans each and a few poorly costumed actors. Images of the
event went extremely viral, making international news and inspiring a horror
film and an hour-long documentary.
Two months later, I found myself walking toward another grim-looking warehouse,
this time in downtown Los Angeles. I was here for
Willy’s Chocolate Experience
LA, a tribute to the Glasgow disaster promising live entertainment, a red
carpet-style photo op and a rare chance to meet the celebrity Oompa Loompa
herself.
An early description of the LA event, which had no official links with the
Glasgow event, touted “an immersive journey” into a whimsical world featuring
the Oompa Loompa, Kirsty Paterson, “maybe” in conversation with the comedian
Nathan Fielder. Also included would be performances by local musicians, film
screenings and “two complimentary jelly beans”. A later version of the
invitation cut the reference to Fielder and said all text had been generated by
AI (typos included). Also gone were claims that Timothée Chalamet might show up
and a line banning refunds because “we’re actually going to deliver”."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
