Sunday September 27

The Eagles were here a few nights ago. And Metallica will begin a tour here on Wednesday. But today, the featured event at The Sphere is “The Wizard of Oz.”

For our final two nights in Las Vegas, we are staying at Treasure Island, which has turned out to be an ideal location for the last stop on our journey. The Sphere is only about seven-tenths of a mile from our hotel, so we had a very short walk ahead of us as we prepared to “follow the yellow brick road.”

There weren’t any concerts scheduled at the Sphere during our stay, so we decided to purchase upper-level tickets to see The Wizard of Oz. Before we left home, a customer service representative at the T-Mobile store in Gadsden had encouraged us to see it. His assessment was, “It’s well worth the price of the ticket.”

After experiencing it for ourselves, we understand what he meant.

A Giant Globe on the Las Vegas Skyline

Like the Space Needle in Seattle and the High Roller (the largest observation wheel in the US), the Sphere has become a unique and prominent structure on the Las Vegas skyline.

You don’t have to know exactly where you are on the Las Vegas Strip to know you’re getting close. Just look up and you’ll eventually see that enormous glowing sphere.

And enormous is the right word. The Sphere is a technological and architectural marvel. It is a massive entertainment venue designed to make the audience feel as though they aren’t simply watching an event but are actually inside the experience.

The exterior itself is a spectacle. Its enormous LED display can transform the building into virtually anything, from a giant eyeball to a smiling face to an enormous moon or a glowing representation of the Earth.

But what happens inside is even more impressive. The venue was designed around immersive entertainment, with a gigantic wraparound screen that extends far beyond the normal field of vision. The enormous display, combined with sophisticated sound, special effects and sensory technology, creates an experience that traditional movie theaters simply cannot duplicate.

The Sphere isn’t just a place where you watch something. It is a place where the environment becomes part of what you’re watching.

There’s No Place Like Oz

Although we haven’t watched the movie in several years, The Wizard of Oz was a perfect choice for The Sphere.

Most of us know the story. Dorothy is swept away from Kansas and transported to a strange and wonderful world filled with colorful characters, talking animals, flying monkeys, a Wicked Witch and, of course, a yellow brick road leading to the Emerald City.

But seeing that story inside the Sphere is something altogether different. The immersive 4-D experience makes you feel as though you are actually traveling with Dorothy. The screen surrounds you. The images extend beyond the traditional boundaries of a movie screen. The sound comes from everywhere. The effects engage your senses in ways that make you forget, at least for a while, that you’re sitting in a theater in Las Vegas.

The Woman Behind Us

But I’m not sure what was more entertaining—the movie or the woman sitting two rows behind us.

I saw her, rather I heard her, as she stood at the bottom of the stairs looking up in anxious disbelief. She was obviously afraid of heights. She barked loud enough for our entire section to hear, “That woman at the ticket booth lied to me. She lied to me! She told me that my seats were not that high up. Oh, Jesus. I’m not sure I can do this.”

That might have been a minor inconvenience at an ordinary movie theater. It was a considerably bigger issue when her seat was in Row 10 of Section 405. From the moment she began climbing the stairs, her commentary became louder and more salty. And she kept it coming.

As she made her way higher and higher, she expressed her concern about the height, the stairs, the distance from the floor and, apparently, the wisdom of whoever had decided that seats should be placed that far above the ground. Smiles turned to laughter as her running commentary became an unexpected part of our entertainment.

And then, as the movie progressed, the Sphere itself began doing what it was designed to do. The experience made the height seem even more dramatic. I’m not sure the woman ever completely overcame her fear of heights, but she persevered.

And she was still there at the end. And when Dorothy threw the water and the Wicked Witch melted, she said, “Now, I know a few people I would like to do that to.”

By then, we had almost become as interested in her comic comments as we were in Dorothy’s journey.

An Experience Worth Having

One thing became clear during our evening at the Sphere: Almost any event would be great in this building. A concert would be spectacular. A sporting event could be incredible to watch. A documentary about the natural world could be breathtaking.

And a movie like The Wizard of Oz takes on an entirely different dimension. The Sphere’s immersive technology isn’t simply a gimmick. It changes the dynamic between the audience and the story.

At a conventional theater, you watch Dorothy enter Oz. At the Sphere, you feel as though you’ve entered Oz with her.

Navigating the Sphere

The facility itself is enormous, and at first glance, it might seem a little intimidating. There are multiple escalators, entrances, exits and levels. With thousands of people moving in and out, it would be easy to imagine the whole operation becoming confusing.

But the staff did an excellent job. There were people everywhere to point us in the right direction and help visitors navigate the building. Despite its size, the process was remarkably organized.

A Walk Through Venice

After the movie, we walked back toward our hotel, taking advantage of another uniquely Las Vegas experience along the way. We crossed the Rialto Bridge and walked through the Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian, which is just across the street from Treasure Island.

It was a fitting way to end the evening. Having visited Venice multiple times, it was enjoyable to walk through this re-creation of Venice without ever leaving Las Vegas.

Eventually, we made our way to Malena’s Yogurt Plus for our traditional evening “snack” before heading back to the room. Then we settled in and watched Bo Nix lead Denver on a great comeback against the Rams.

The Last Day

Tomorrow will be our final day on this western adventure.

It will be a leisure day, a chance to slow down, do a little relaxing, repack our luggage and prepare for our early flight home Tuesday morning.

It’s hard to believe the trip is almost over. We’ve traveled through some remarkable country. We’ve seen the Hoover Dam, Lake Powell, Glen Canyon, Zion, the Grand Canyon and the spectacular landscapes of the Southwest. And we’ve collected enough stories to keep us talking about this trip for a long time.

Tomorrow we’ll enjoy one last leisurely day in Las Vegas. Then we’ll pack our bags, head to the airport and begin the journey home.

And as Dorothy said, “There’s no place like home.”