Americans, as we know, compete to see who does things bigger. And when it comes to going big, it’s hard to compete with Las Vegas. This is demonstrated by what is happening to Spherewhere the U2 are holding a series of concerts that are decidedly out of the ordinary.
After all, the city of sin, which keeps visitors’ secrets under the motto “what happens in Las Vegas, stays in Las Vegas”, introduced the musical universe to the concept of residency: artists who perform only in the same place for a period of time. The thought immediately goes to Elvis, who spent the last period of his career in the ivory tower of the International Hotel, where he performed every evening.
We could define it a tour in reverse: the artist stays in one place, the whole world goes to see him. This is exactly what Bono Vox and his associates are doing in recent weeks, albeit without drummer Larry Mullen due to health problems, performing in what is defined as “the largest spherical structure in the world”.
The Sphere is the largest LED in the world
The numbers? The Sphere is 112 meters high and 157 meters wide, with 1.2 million LEDs that transmit three-dimensional images in very high definition on an area of 54 thousand square meters. It is, in fact, the largest LED in the world. The cost? About 2.3 billion dollars.
U2 will hold a total of 25 concerts at the Sphere, between September 29 and December 16, 2023. Each date will host 18,600 spectators from all over the world. Tickets for the first part of the residency are already all sold out, while the remaining ones they can cost more than 1300 dollars.
Also among the celebrities in the audience at the premiere on September 29th Sir Paul McCartney, honored by U2 with a series of Beatles covers. These include Blackbird, Love Me Do and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.