U2 will perform the first concert at the new MSG Sphere at The Venetian in Las Vegas when the venue opens sometime next year, per Billboard. The band will play a multi-show residency over several months at the state-of-the-art $1.8 billion arena, which is being built by Madison Square Garden Entertainment chairman James Dolan just off of the Las Vegas Strip.
Announced in 2018, the MSG Sphere was engineered to provide the ideal live music experience—in contrast to multi-purpose arenas that host sports as well as concerts. The venue will utilize “beamforming audio,” a technology developed by German firm Holoplot that sends sound directly to specific locations instead of blasting it over speakers spread through a venue, which will ensure that the music sounds great from every seat in the house.
MSG Sphere will be the largest spherical structure ever created, with a capacity of 20,000 standing or 17,500 seated guests and 23 VIP suites. The interior will offer a 160,000 square foot immersive display, and the building’s exterior exosphere will use programmable LED technology to transform appearance. The building will connect to the Venetian Resort via an approximately 1,000-foot-long pedestrian bridge.
Madison Square Garden Entertainment announced it was taking over construction of the MSG Sphere from general contractor AECOM in December. The announcement stated that the company had made “significant progress” made on the venue’s construction, having erected the sixth-level, 490-foot-wide concrete ring beam that will be the building’s widest point.
MSG Sphere was originally scheduled to open in 2021 but was pushed back to 2023 due to pandemic-related challenges. The venue is scheduled to open in time to participate in the FIA Formula One World Championship when it comes to Nevada in November 2023.
A second MSG Sphere is being planned in London, with construction set to begin in March.
[h/t Billboard]