The MSG Sphere in Las Vegas opened its doors recently amid much hype when the giant LED-covered globe hosted its first concert.
Irish rockers U2 began their three-month residency in the unique arena that cost an estimated $2.4 billion to build.
The project was first announced by The Madison Square Garden Company in 2018 with construction beginning a year later.
Design for the Sphere was handled by Populous who have designed many of the newer arenas and stadiums for the MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL in the United States.
But the underlying technology that powers the Sphere is revolutionary, creating a virtual world capable of hosting almost any type of show.
The Sphere offers a whopping 16K by 16K wraparound LED screen and beam-focused audio from 167,000 speakers to deal with the strange acoustics in what is the largest globe structure in the world.
The arena seats 18,600 on nine levels offering an immersive 4D experience to shows so that audience members can feel wind, temperature changes, humidity shifts, moving, and vibrating chairs to go along with the show.
“It really is a new medium,” said James Dolan, CEO of MSG. “When you’re in the Sphere, you don’t get told what to look at. The audience decides what they want to focus on.”
In addition to U2’s three-month residency, the Sphere will soon host an original film from award-winning director Darren Aronofsky called Postcard from Earth.
The film was produced in MSG Sphere Studios which opened in Burbank to produce content using all new types of cameras to capture images for the Sphere’s huge screen.
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