Is This $2 Billion Las Vegas Sphere the Future of Live Music?

Designers say the high-tech Las Vegas Sphere will redefine the concert-going experience. Others say it’s an expensive boondoggle. Ever since the Beatles first crossed the Atlantic, in 1964, major concerts have largely taken place at venues built for sports, even though that often means poor sight lines for many fans, and less-than-optimal sound for most everybody. But a new era of live entertainment begins in late September, when U2 christen the “Sphere” in Las Vegas. The 366-foot-tall, 516-foot-wide geometric shape near the Venetian hotel completely reinvents every aspect of the rock-concert experience from the ground up, and is the culmination of seven years of work, with a budget that reportedly swelled beyond $2 billion… read more >