Shaping the Future of Entertainment

Las Vegas is often touted as home of the biggest and brightest entertainment centers.

Well, if it’s possible, The City that Never Sleeps might have outdone itself.

An amazing new, uber-futuristic theater is scheduled to open in 2021 … and Max Weiss Company helped shape the ultra-modern, sensory-overload venue.

We recently completed rolling nearly 2,300 segments for the gigantic MSG Sphere at The Venetian, a globe-shaped theater that will literally surround audiences with dazzling levels of sight and sound. Whatever concert or cinematic experiences you’ve enjoyed, they’ll pale in comparison to sitting in one of the MSG Sphere’s 18,000 seats.

The circular venue promises an “immersive entertainment experience with the largest- and highest-resolution media display on earth,” according to Madison Square Garden (MSG) Entertainment, its parent company. Besides 360-degree visuals, the venue features an audio projection system that can allow people just a few feet apart to hear broadcasts in different languages. Resonating bass will have attendees literally feeling the sound.

The MSG Sphere will be 366 feet tall. Given its globe shape, that’s a lot of curved metal. Our professional partners W&W | AFCO Steel asked for help. We were glad to oblige.

The steel bending and metal forming work took months in our shop. If you’re wondering why, here’s a breakdown of the super-precise steel fabrication: 

• 384 lengths 9’’ x 5’’ x 3/8’’ wall rectangular tube, Grade A500 the hard way to a 246 ft.  radius
• 247 lengths 10’’ x 6’’ x 3/8’’ wall rectangular tube, Grade A500 the hard way to a 246 ft.  radius
• 670 lengths 4-1/2’’ O.D. x 3/8’’ wall Structural Round Tube, Grade A500 to a 246 ft.  radius
• 224 lengths 8.625’’ O.D. x .375’’ wall Structural Round Tube, Grade A500 to a 246 ft. radius
• 768 lengths 7.50’’ O.D. x .375’’ wall Structural Round Tube, Grade A500 to a 246 ft. radius

Work began on the $1.2 billion MSG Sphere in late 2018. After being shut down temporarily by the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020, its opening was pushed back to an unannounced date next year.

The MSG Sphere is near the Venetian Resort on the famed Las Vegas Strip. Roughly a mile southwest is Allegiant Stadium, the sparkling new home of the NFL’s Las Vegas (formerly Oakland) Raiders. We were thrilled to help build this new entertainment center, which opens in fall.

Modern entertainment venues are spectacles of technology and architecture. Each new one outdoes the last, in a spiraling grasp to attract audiences who crave every possible amenity.

Underlying all is a foundation that provides unmatched strength and support: structural steel. Max Weiss is proud to play a quiet, but vital, role in the construction. Given how loud these places can get when filled by thousands, steel’s positive qualities are needed more than ever!

MSG Sphere at The Venetian Image courtesy of Las Vegas Review-Journal and courtesy of FOX5 Vegas respectively