The second US sphere would be built in an area known as National Harbor in Prince Georgeโs County, Maryland. Located along the Potomac River, National Harbor currently features a convention center, multiple hotels, restaurants, and shops. While Abu Dhabi plans to build a sphere as large as the one in Las Vegas, the National Harbor venue would be one of the first mini-Sphere venues announced last March.
Its capacity would be limited to 6,000 seats instead of over 17,000. But the smaller Sphere would still be hard to miss with an exterior LED exosphere for showcasing the โartistic and branded contentโ that helped make the original sphere a unique part of the Las Vegas skyline.
The inside of the mini-Sphere will feature a high-resolution 16,000 by 16,000 pixel wrap-around screen, the companyโs immersive sound technology, haptic seating, and โ4D environmental effects.โ For the AI-enhanced version of The Wizard of Oz currently playing in Las Vegas, audiences experience effects like wind, fog, smells, and apples falling from the ceiling.
The mini-Sphere will potentially also be cheaper to build than the $2.3 billion original, but its construction is contingent on the โreceipt of certain governmental incentives and approvals from Prince Georgeโs County and the State of Maryland.โ Sphere Entertainment says the project โwould utilize a combination of public and private funding, including approximately $200 million in state, local, and private incentives,โ but would potentially generate millions of dollars in revenue for the country and state while supporting over 4,700 jobs once it opens.
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