LAS VEGAS, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Swirling winds,

drone-operated monkeys and artificial intelligence brought new

life to "The Wizard of Oz" on Thursday at the premiere of an

immersive version of the Hollywood classic in Las Vegas.

A yellow-brick carpet, mimicking the yellow brick road in

the film, led to the entrance of Sphere, a high-tech,

dome-shaped entertainment venue that is showing the update of

the 1939 movie musical.

Premiere attendees included Lorna Luft, whose mother Judy

Garland played Dorothy in the movie.

"We are finally off to see the wizard!" Sphere Entertainment ( SPHR )

CEO James Dolan told the crowd. "What you're about to see

tonight is our most powerful example yet of experiential

storytelling in this new media."

Some cinema lovers have recoiled at the idea of tinkering

with a classic film. Workers in Hollywood also are wary that

artificial intelligence will be used to replace human work.

Dolan said audiences would be wowed by the new "Wizard of

Oz" experience.

"For the first time, you're going to feel like you're part

of the story," he said.

Reworking the film took more than two years and 2,000

people, including the Sphere's creative team, Google's DeepMind

researchers and Warner Bros Discovery ( WBD )

executives. The film has been updated and AI has been used to

make it watchable on Sphere's giant, wraparound screen.

AI restored tiny celluloid frames into today's high

definition and filled in details such as freckles on Dorothy's

face. Proponents see it as a potential watershed moment in

Hollywood's use of AI tools.

The Sphere added off-screen elements such as fans that

kicked up wind and blew leaf-shaped confetti when the tornado

swept Dorothy's farmhouse into the sky. Sixteen-foot

(4.88-metre) helium-filled monkeys flew overhead as the Wicked

Witch plotted Dorothy's demise.