The Sphere Experience: Dead & Company and Future Live Shows

In June 2024, I saw Dead & Company at the Sphere in Las Vegas, and it was unlike any concert I’ve experienced. After wrapping up their final tour in 2023, the band launched a residency at the Sphere, with shows running through 2024 and into 2025. The Sphere lives up to the hype — the sound, the visuals, the full immersive setup is on another level.

The show itself was spectacular. From the opening sequence fading out of San Francisco, to a wild cosmic ride that eventually dropped us back down into the Haight-Ashbury, the visuals were just unreal. Who knows, maybe they’ll keep it going in 2026.

🌀 So What Is the Sphere?

If you haven’t seen the Sphere yet, it’s not just hype — it’s a full sensory overload in the best way. Officially called the MSG Sphere, it opened in September 2023 and is the largest spherical structure in the world, standing at 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide. The outside is a massive LED screen, and the inside? Imagine 18,000 seats, floor-to-ceiling visuals, 160,000 speakers, haptic feedback in the seats, and a sound system that literally beams audio directly to your ears. It’s next-level.

Dead & Company leaned into the visuals too — trippy animations, psychedelic landscapes, and surreal 360-degree art that made you feel like you were inside the music. The setlist spanned decades, but the real magic was how the Sphere transformed it into a full-on immersive experience. I’ve seen a lot of shows, but nothing quite like this.

🎤 What’s Next at the Sphere?

Dead & Company aren’t the only ones taking up residency. U2 helped launch the venue, and other major acts like Phish, Postcard from Earth (Sphere-exclusive film), and rumored big names are all part of the rotating lineup. If you’re heading to Vegas, it's worth seeing what’s playing — even if you’re not a mega fan of whoever’s on stage. The venue itself is half the experience.

If you’re planning to catch a show at the Sphere, be mindful of where you sit — especially in the 100-level. While these lower seats are some of the most popular, there’s an overhang from the level above that can partially block your view of the full wraparound screen.

Pro tip: If you're sitting in the 100s, try to stay in rows 1–20. Starting around row 22, you might begin to lose the top portion of the visuals. By row 25 and up, the overhang becomes more noticeable, and by row 27 or higher, it can really cut into the immersive effect. The stage is still visible, but the screen experience — which is a huge part of the show — might not feel quite as mind-blowing.

If you're going for the full Sphere experience, it’s worth spending a little extra to sit low and center.

👉 Check out current Sphere shows on StubHub

🏞️ And Then… Zion

After the show, we drove out to Zion National Park — a solid change of pace. We spent the next day hiking Angels Landing, and after all the noise, lights, and chaos of Vegas, being out there was exactly what was needed. Going from the Sphere to those red rock cliffs felt like flipping a switch.

👉 Read about my Angels Landing hike at Zion

Written by Tyler, founder of Globetroves™.
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Posted June 2025