(Las Vegas) “It was supposed to cost 1 billion dollars, but now it’s gone to 2.3 billion…”
Our Uber driver had just told us how much he loves Montreal, and here it is, what a coincidence, all the same: without even being asked, he wanted to make us feel at home, talking to us of a large amphitheater whose construction costs skyrocket to infinity. Thank you, friendly driver, we didn’t ask for so much.
It is well known that Las Vegas is the capital of excess, and in this setting, a project like the Sphere MSG fits perfectly. We can already see it in the distance, this thing, all black and windowless, which stands behind the casinos and the posters of scantily clad girls.
At first glance, like that, it looks like something between the Biosphere and the Death Star, but no, it’s even more than that.
This black ball will be a performance hall, the only one of its kind, with 580,000 feet of LED panels and 170,000 speakers that will point to each seat. It looks like it will be something, and it will have to be, because with a price tag of 2.3 billion, it is indeed expected to be something.
This UFO that now stands in the sky of Vegas is the wild dream of billionaire James Dolan, who owns the New York Rangers and Knicks.
According to New York Post, Dolan has offered the tidy sum of 10 million dollars to U2 so that the famous Irish group will perform in his new toy from September. We are talking about a total of 25 shows here and maybe more, if ever the rumor of a residency for the Bono band proves to be true.
Tickets for the first evening, that of September 29, are already sold out, but there are still VIP packages, including the hotel, for only US$1776.45. Hurry, it seems we’re tearing them off.