The newest over the top Las Vegas attraction is here – and it’s like nothing the city has ever seen before. The Sphere is a 366 feet tall concert venue which, you guessed it, takes the shape of a massive sphere. A giant ball just off the Vegas strip would be cool enough, but the Sphere fits right in with every other over-the-top Vegas attraction by boasting over 1.2 million LED panels that completely cover the inside and outside. This allows the inside of building to function effectively as a movie theater/concert venue hybrid, and the outside to appear as a mystifying, glowing orb of ad space for whichever company pays the most (ads are constantly run on the Sphere, and the cost to run an ad on it is upwards of $450,000 per day, according to NBC).
Truthfully, when I heard about the Sphere for the first time, my initial reaction was that it was corporate America just taking another step in the direction of our increasingly hyper-consumerist society. An enormous ball with the sole purpose to entertain the masses does feel a little dystopian, after all. Although after visiting it to see the band U2 play inside of the Sphere back in December, I can now confidently say that it is exactly that, and so much more.
After flying to Vegas and staying a night in the Venetian, my family and I made our way to the Sphere for the concert.
Entering the Sphere feels like you are plunged into a different world, as the first thing to greet you as you walk in is a talking robot who’s strange looks fit it right in the uncanny valley. The robot’s name is Aura, and you can ask it questions and receive AI generated responses in return. I saw people holding full conversations with this robot. No, I’m not making this up.
Regardless, it’s no question that the Sphere itself is a marvel of engineering. As we took our seats before the concert began, the walls of the inside of the Sphere looked like concrete bricks surrounding us, and there was a small opening at the top that exposed the sky. My first thought was “what if it rains?”, but it soon became clear that this was just a visual from the screen, and that no, there was not actually a gaping hole in the top of the Sphere. The fact that I even had that thought attests to the intense realism of the visuals in the venue.
As U2 came out and the concert started, the visuals themselves were even more stunning, and completely enthralling throughout the entire set. A diverse set of creative sequences added a new layer to the music and felt incredibly immersive, even during the less well-known songs.
Really though, there were certain visual sections that were like nothing I have ever seen before. For example, during the second song, clever optical illusion was used that was absolutely captivating. As the song began, the screen turned the Sphere’s appearance into a box-like shape with random numbers flashing all over the sides, and then back into a sphere. I’m aware that description probably sounds like complete nonsense if you’ve never seen what the Sphere even looks like, so I would look it up online if your curious – there are plenty of videos of the concert out there.
One sequence felt out of place though, as it showed a series of flashing words on the screen that embodied a rebellious, anti-capitalist message. I understand this is not out of place for U2, but something about showing punk-like, rage against the machine-type imagery felt ironic when the Sphere itself seems to embody complete materialistic consumption in modern-day America. I mean really, a massive $2 billion dollar ball sitting in the center of Las Vegas – the capital of hedonism in the western world – and I’m inside the giant ball watching the screen project the words “EVERYTHING YOU KNOW IS WRONG”. Either I’m missing the point, or there seems to be some real lack of self awareness here.
The energy of the crowd was about what you would expect from a U2 concert, filled with more bald white men than the average suburban barbecue, and moms that were too drunk to remember the words to “With or Without You”.
It would be easy to write off the Sphere as just another crazy Las Vegas attraction, but there really is something incredible here. Now, would I recommend spending your money to see a bunch of old guys sing songs in a giant glowing orb? It depends. If you really love U2, go for it. If not, consider saving your money until a band that you really love comes along – the Sphere isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
U2 recently announced they would be continuing shows in the Sphere up until March, although it seems strange to me the Sphere has not announced any other bands or artists to play in the unique venue. I would be curious to see artists who are notable live performers, like Beyoncé or Taylor Swift play in the Sphere. The challenge that comes with this is each new artist performing would have to have completely new visuals animated for the concave screen, which I can only imagine is a massive undertaking. For this reason, it seems as though we may only see a few performers per year playing in the Sphere, and likely to the tune of bands that are past their prime.
