Dead and Company announced Wednesday the band will be returning to The Sphere for 18 more shows at what some are calling the greatest venue for live music.
The Grateful Dead offshoot with John Mayer on lead guitar held its first residency at the technologically advanced spot on The Strip last May and wowed capacity crowds with the music and psychedelic visuals.
The San Francisco legends' first run lasted 30 shows, a feat topped by just one other group, U2, who opened the joint with a 40-night stay.
Dead & Co at The Sphere is such a match made in heaven (though ironically set in Sin City) that we had several pieces about the original residency beginning with this one in May.
In August, Variety's Chris Willman wondered aloud why their run felt so much more historic than U2 and Phish's visits, despite being earlier in the calendar.
"...when Dead & Co wrapped up that run Saturday night after two months, why did it seem like they had come to own the place?" he asked. "And how soon, everyone wanted to know, could they come back?
Now we know: May.
Could this become an ongoing cycle where each spring Uncle John's band rambles back into the mind-blowing dome? MSG who owns the place would probably be ok with that.
For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, Sphere lost close to a half billion dollars. One of the issues is it takes a long time to program the graphics inside the facility that enhances the experience enough to make it worth the high ticket prices.
Meanwhile the advertising dollars on the outside of the building have not poured in as quickly as the company expected. So it needs bands like the Dead, the Eagles, and others to hold extended runs at the place not only just for butts in seats, but to help maintain the buzz.
As great as the Phish shows were, they famously refuse to perform the same gig twice. In the Sphere's case that means they wanted new graphics and visuals for each performance. So that limited them to just a handful of gigs.
One could imagine established stars like Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Beyoncé or Taylor Swift could easily do several months at the Sphere and their fans would fly in from around the world to enjoy the unique visual experience mixed with state-of-the-art sound. But that has yet to happen.
Another idea would be artists who don't like to tour might be interested. People like Eminem, Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande, or Rhianna could fly in for the weekend, play a few shows, fly home, and jet back a few days later.
Tickets for Dead and Company at the Sphere go on sale December 10. Pre-register on the band's website now.
Dead Forever 2025 at The Sphere
Thursday, March 20
Friday, March 21
Saturday, March 22
Thursday, March 27
Friday, March 28
Saturday, March 29
Thursday, April 17
Friday, April 18
Saturday, April 19
Thursday, April 24
Friday, April 25
Saturday, April 26
Friday, May 9
Saturday, May 10
Sunday, May 11
Thursday, May 15
Friday, May 16
Saturday, May 17
