What is Sphere? The internet is mystified by new Las Vegas venue

Sphere, the largest spherical structure in the world, just opened on the Las Vegas Strip and the internet is mesmerized.

The newest entertainment venue in Sin City easily stands out among the massive hotels decorating the skyline — the spherical building includes 580,000 square feet of fully programmable LED lights, according to its website, that illuminate Sphere’s exterior.

Leading up to its grand opening on Sept. 29, tourists who cruised down the strip during the past few months could see the exterior transform for different events. At one point during the summer, it became a giant orange basketball to advertise the NBA Summer League.

The view from one of the 17,500 seats inside Sphere seems to be just as impressive. Fans who attended the grand opening over the weekend to see U2 kick off their new Las Vegas residency shared videos on social media from the immersive experience.

“Entertainment will never be the same. @U2,” the Sphere’s official account posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, and added a video from the concert that showed a kaleidoscope display unraveling to cover the entire arena.

At the end of the long, eventful weekend, the venue transformed again. On Oct. 1, Sphere’s account revealed that the exterior turned into a giant sleepy-eyed emoji. “Getting some shut-eye after a busy weekend,” the tweet said.

While some social media users marveled at the one-of-a-kind building, many were overwhelmed and others joked about the venue’s unusual atmosphere. Read some of the mixed reactions to Sphere’s debut, below.

What is social media saying?

In addition to concerts and music residencies, Sphere will also host sporting events and other immersive experiences, according to its website. But some social media users have some other ideas for future events at Sphere.

One X user joked that the inside of the venue resembled the rainbow parachute from their elementary school days.

“Yeah I’ve been to a show at The Sphere,” the person tweeted and included a photo of school children sitting in a circle underneath the parachute.

The Sphere account joined in on the fun and replied, “The nostalgia is way too real.”

Television presenter and journalist Nina Parker pitched displaying Beyoncé’s upcoming “Renaissance” film across the thousands of LED screens.

Multiple social media users voiced their initial responses to a slew of posts about Sphere that flooded their timelines.

“Spending all afternoon watching @SphereVegas videos,” one person tweeted.

Writer Ashley Reese had a completely different reaction.

“I’m repulsed by The Sphere,” she tweeted. Others agreed and commented below her post, pointing out that the amount of lights inside the arena could cause a sensory overload.

“I just know I would get SO motion sick inside,” one person replied.

Still, plenty of social media were impressed by the eye-catching display.

“What’s inside the Las Vegas Sphere?” one account asked and included a video from a fan at the U2 concert who was amazed by the stage design.

The surrounding LED lights in the arena made it appear as though the ceiling was constantly moving during U2’s performance in the clip.

“This is so mesmerizing! I just wana live there,” one X user said.

Another shared the video and wrote, “I would be so overstimulated that I couldn’t enjoy anything.”

Who was the first performer to play Sphere?

U2 kicked off the first of its 25 performances at Sphere on Sept. 29, welcoming fans into the arena for the first time.

“What a fancy pad,” lead singer Bono said to the crowd, according to the Associated Press.

That is certainly an understatement. The outlet reports that the Sphere cost $2.3 billion to build and that James Dolan, the executive chair of Madison Square Garden and owner of the New York Knicks and Rangers, drew the first design of the venue.

“It really is a new medium,” Dolan said about the building when speaking to reporters. “When you’re in the Sphere, you don’t get told what to look at. The audience decides what they want to focus on.”

U2 fans and plenty of celebrities were in attendance to witness the spectacle in person.

Ava DuVernay shared a photo on her Instagram story of her girls’ night out with Gayle King, Oprah Winfrey and Maria Shriver.

Orlando Bloom uploaded videos to his Instagram story from his date night with Katy Perry. In one clip, the two sang U2’s ballad “With Or Without You” together.

Connie Britton, Dakota Fanning, Diplo, Adam Scott, Paul McCartney, LeBron James and more also attended the opening night of the “U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere” residency.

Where is Sphere located?

Sphere is located next to The Venetian Resort in Paradise, Nevada. There is a pedestrian bridge connecting the hotel and the venue.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com