Ankhs for the memories

This review by longtime Charlotte arts critic Lawrence Toppman was published by The Charlotte Ledger on April 27, 2026. You can find out more about The Charlotte Ledger’s commitment to smart local news and information and sign up for our newsletter for free here. Ledger subscribers can add the Toppman on the Arts newsletter on their “My Account” page.

by Lawrence Toppman

Certain events should last exactly 45 minutes: a headliner’s well-crafted act at the top of a comedy bill, a battle on a tricky miniature golf course between two skilled players, a spinach and mushroom quiche browning firmly in an oven. To that we can add the rivetingly compact “Horizon of Khufu,” running now through Aug. 30 at Blume Studios’ Stage 1.

That length of time is ideal for absorbing all the experience has to offer while comfortably wearing the virtual reality headset, through which AI avatars guide you back to Egypt in the 26th century before Christ. The show — or should I call it an exhibit? — comes from Excurio, the Paris-based designer of half a dozen VR excursions. I didn’t want it to go on a moment more or less — more and my sense of wonder might have dissipated a degree, less and I would have had to forgo some exceptional images.

I’m not going to describe those at length, because surprises come around every corner of the pharaoh’s tomb. We know little about the real Khufu, save that he probably commissioned the Great Pyramid of Giza. We know more about his resting place, which has been explored, and that knowledge is used here to show us methods of pyramid construction, rituals of embalming and mourning, even a voyage down the Nile on a funerary ship.

Patrons choose between the full experience and a moderate version, recommended for people with vertigo, a tendency to get migraines, etc. I chose the full one, as I’m fine with heights, but even I stepped back involuntarily as I peered into a “chasm” inside the virtual pyramid.

I enjoyed “Space Explorers: The Infinite,” the first immersive show at Blume Studios, when I reviewed it in September 2024. But “Khufu” outstrips it in a number of ways. First, you don’t have to pick paths to follow, as there’s only one way to walk; you had to make choices in “Explorers” and inevitably missed a chunk of the narrative. Second, the VR effects seem sharper than I remember. Third, our imaginations get more of a workout this time; we’re constantly placing ourselves in the sandals of Khufu and his retinue, which seems more personal than strolling among bulky-suited astronauts.

You begin with a brief tutorial explaining how to respect other patrons’ personal spaces, telling you to remain silent — this is crucial to the illusion that you and others in your group are alone on the pyramid tour — and setting out rules for the walk-through: Don’t sit down, avoid walls (which appear as red lines in your headset), stay in areas with blue and yellow outlines. A virtual ankh, symbol of eternal life, gets attached to your chest.

Then you’re entrusted to Mona, your AI guide. As you follow her, you soon forget the Blume Studios floor beneath your feet. You crouch to avoid striking your head on blocks of “stone,” slip through narrow passageways, step gingerly on broken paving to keep from toppling into a pit. By the time you float to the top of the pyramid, looking out to the modern city of Giza past a tastelessly erected golf course, you feel as though you’re atop the ancient world. Sounds of wind and fly-bys from birds reinforce that beautiful illusion. (I swear I felt a breeze!)

I especially appreciated the care that went into every scene to suggest reality. Mona, who’s young for an Egyptologist, wears braces on her teeth. A tiny bus traverses the road alongside the pyramids, as you look down from the heights. A cat, who slips into an inner chamber and will play a key role in your visit, sounds much like an actual feline. The great blocks of the pyramid bear graffiti from centuries of uncouth visitors.

Excurio hasn’t quite managed to replicate human motion; they do better with the cat. But that’s a quibble once you attend the funeral service of Khufu, led by his brother Rahotep (who really does look like statues we have of the man).

You peer timidly over the edge of the sarcophagus, awed by the incense-cloaked ceremony but hoping to get a glimpse of the show’s elusive title character. No luck; he’s discreetly wrapped in cloth. And as you shake your head in frustration, you remember once again that you’re moving through a space that exists only in your mind. That’s a joy every moment that it lasts, and startling when the illusion gently ends after three-quarters of a spellbinding hour.

Lawrence Toppman covered the arts for 40 years at The Charlotte Observer before retiring in 2020. Now, he’s back in the critic’s chair for the Charlotte Ledger — look for his reviews several times each month in the Charlotte Ledger.