A ‘Larger Than Life’ Concert Experience at Sphere Las Vegas

In 1998, my two best friends and I camped out overnight at the Foley’s (RIP) at Collin Creek Mall (RIP) in order to purchase tickets to an *NSYNC concert at Bronco Bowl (RIP). After the sun rose and the doors opened, we inched our way forward in the serpentining line through the furniture department only to arrive at the ticket counter after the tickets sold out. The next year, we victoriously attended our first concert when *NSYNC performed at Texas Stadium on August 14, 1999 at their “Boys of Summer” tour, sponsored by Clairol’s Herbal Essences shampoo.

It should be obvious that I am a millennial. Boy bands matter to me.

Y2K, A Cultural Reset

I once read that your favorite year of pop culture is the year that you turned 13. This rings true for me. I turned 13 years old in 1999, which was, by all accounts, a cultural reset. Fight Club, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Office Space, The Virgin Suicides, Cruel Intentions, American Pie, 10 Things I Hate About You, Notting Hill, and She’s All That all came out in 1999. “Believe,” “No Scrubs,” “Angel of Mine,” “Kiss Me,” “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” “Genie in a Bottle,” “… Baby One More Time,” “That Don’t Impress Me Much,” “Summer Girls,” and “Miami” topped the charts.

You know what else came out in 1999? Backstreet Boys’ “Millennium” album, which included certified BOPS like “I Want It That Way” and “All I Have To Give.”

Earlier this year, when the Backstreet Boys announced a summer residency at Sphere Las Vegas, the group text lit up. We *had* to go. Through divine fate (or our adolescent training in ticket acquisition), we secured the bag — three tickets to opening night.

Backstreet’s Back Alright!

At Dallas Love Field Airport that day, swaths of fellow middle-aged millennial women boarded our same Southwest Airlines flight. Many were doing what I call a “Town & Back,” a one-night, in-and-out trip for One Fun Thing. We all had the same idea, opting to keep things easy and stay at The Venetian because it’s attached to Sphere.

The Venetian recently underwent a $1.5 billion transformation, including a makeover for the guest rooms. At 750 square feet, the standard suite is the largest standard room on the Las Vegas Strip and includes a separate sunken living room. All that to say, there was plenty of room for three gals to spread out and select our “going out tops.”

The Backstreet Boys called for a “whiteout,” and naturally, we obliged. Before the concert, we ate dinner at The Venetian. Girlies flocked into the restaurant— aptly named “Chica“— decked out in white, buzzing with energy, and ready to have a Cosmopolitan. (Swifties understand the inherent camaraderie amongst your fellow concert-goers.)

Being in Las Vegas made me realize how many of the Strip’s buzziest restaurants also operate Dallas locations, including Catch, Sadelle’s, Nobu, and Carbone. Delilah, a Roaring Twenties-themed supper club located in Wynn Las Vegas, remains one of Sin City’s biggest hotspots. Excitingly, Delilah plans to open in Dallas later this year in the Design District.

After dinner, the indoor, air-conditioned walk from The Venetian to Sphere took eight minutes. (Since we are talking about Las Vegas in July, this feels like an important notation in the “pro” column.) The sphere-shaped venue, which cost $2.3 billion, features the world’s largest LED screen and dazzles at every moment. You’ve already heard this, so I’ll refrain from waxing on about the larger than life visuals. However good I expected it to be, it was better. Backstreet Boys transported nearly 20,000 of us back to the millennium, tapping into the deepest well of Y2K nostalgia that I haven’t accessed in years.

After the concert, we walked back to The Venetian, stopping in Black Tap to giggle and relive the night over chicken tenders and milkshakes. (We all agreed that Nick Carter stood the test of time the best.) The next day, I opened the archives and wore a Juicy Couture terry cloth coverup with a Tiffany & Co. silver heart necklace and my 2003 Chanel sunglasses. Gen Z calls this look “vintage Y2K.” Blame nostalgia and delusion, but the look still slays.

All our time spent in flashes of light, and poof!, it was over. The moms had to mom. We headed to the airport in our $60 merch t-shirts, beaming with pride like our votes had propelled “I Want It That Way” to the top spot on TRL for the 13th day in a row.

Years ago, our parents sold our childhood homes. I will likely never live across the street from my best friend again.

You can never go home again, but you can go to the Sphere. And “as long as there be music, we’ll be coming back again.”