Venetian Sphere to Make Las Vegas an Edgier, Governor Sandoval Gets Ball Rolling

Construction is due to begin on the MSG Sphere at The Venetian, following a groundbreaking ceremony held Thursday on the Las Vegas Strip.

Addressing attendees at the ceremony, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval said he believed the ambitious project was “truly is the next chapter in the history of the evolution of the entertainment capital of the world,” as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

“When you’re in the middle of making history, you don’t realize that you’re making it,” he continued. “When you look at the Sphere, it is unlike anything on planet Earth. This will be the first of its kind, right here in Las Vegas, Nevada.”

The Future of Concert Venues

The giant glass globe will be more than just a futuristic bauble nestled behind the Venetian and Palazzo on the Las Vegas skyline when it opens in 2021 – it will be a 18,000-seat concert venue that promises to “revolutionize the way artists and audiences connect” via the “next generation of transformative, immersive experiences,” according to developers.

The sound transmission system will be produced by by thousands of tiny speakers embedded in the venue’s walls.

The sphere’s exterior display is fully programmable, meaning it will project constantly evolving visuals from its surface to onlookers. Inside, the Sphere will boast the world’s largest and highest-resolution media display.

Adelson Shovels Dirt

LVS chairman and CEO, the billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, was also present on Thursday to turn of the first shovel of dirt. Adelson told the LVRJ — a newspaper he owns — that the groundbreaking represented a new chapter in the changing face of the Las Vegas Strip.  

We have the (Vegas) Golden Knights at T-Mobile (Arena) and pretty soon, we’ll have the Raiders in the new stadium,” he said. “And then, we’ll have the Sphere where people will be able to enjoy performances in a way they’ve never experienced them before.”

After Las Vegas, MSG and architect Populous plan to build a similar venue in London, and more locations around the world beyond that. But Vegas will be the first.

“Do you suppose when they broke ground for the Eiffel Tower that people knew what it was going to be?” Madison Square Garden CEO asked the crowd on Thursday. “I’m pretty sure they didn’t. I think this is going to be like that.”