ADELE

Adele's highly anticipated Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum, Caesar Palace, opened on November 18th and is expected to continue every weekend until March 25th 2023. The show was originally planned in February but was canceled apparently due to the singer's team being too sick of Covid, however it seems that Adele wasn't happy with the staging and the concept of the show, which has the artist singing her songs in a fake swimming pool. The new stage is an adaptation of her design, a fitting inspiration for a show that aims to capture the intimacy that Adele has always shown in her lyrics. In order to tell the story from the beginning of the British pop diva's career until today, the design of the showl, created by STUFISH, starts small and gradually builds with every song to create an ever-expanding world and involves the use of scenic kinetic panels that move on a custom-built tracking trolley system that creates an ever-changing environment, a modular decking performer wall for an orchestra and even a wine glass chandelier. The band consists of nine players who are positioned on moving platforms that move between the projected layers to create multiple formations. As the show continues, a rear video screen rises to reveal a three-story vertical structure, housing the 24-string orchestra. 

The show begins with a touching opening of piano and voice on the notes of "Hello", with a gigantic "A", the initial of the pop star's name, to surmount the stage, followed by the explosive "Rolling in the deep", the hit that made Adele a pop star from worldwide success. Immediately afterwards we witness the reproduction of another of the British singer's most loved singles: "Chasing pavements", written three years after "Rolling in the deep", with the profile of the singer reproduced in the windows that open on the maxi screen behind the band. At one point with "Set fire to the rain", among the singles of the 2011 album, the stage even catches fire, with the flames destroying the white baby grand piano and touching the singers and members of the band, while a fake rain falls on the British pop diva. From the fire we then move on to confetti for a magical closing of the evening which is marked by the song "Love is a game", taken from the last album "30" (which allowed the singer to total seven nominations at the next Grammy Awards, the most coveted awards in the world music biz, whose delivery ceremony will take place in Los Angeles on February 5, 2023). The singer thus disappears under a rain of red confetti, a trick that was possible thanks to the presence of a trap door under Adele's feet which, by opening, makes the 34-year-old London pop star disappear, leaving the fans sitting in the Colosseum's armchairs amazed. 

The show required a huge variety of content, ranging from painted panoramas to a reimagining of the Skyfall title sequence, all designed and created by Treatment Studio. The six-month production resulted in over 25 pieces of content to cover the massive LED and projection surfaces that totaled over 238,000,000 pixels. To create an immersive and intimate experience in the theater, STUFISH decided to expand the projection into the auditorium onto a false proscenium to reach the balconies and become an extension of the stage. This creates a panoramic canvas for large-scale video images and live footage to be projected across the Colosseum. 

However, scenography is not the only complex system that came to life on the stage of the Colosseum on the evening of November 18, in fact, according to what reported by the Daily Mail, the English singer, during her live shows in Las Vegas, to protect her voice during the different performances would have a system of purification units, water molecule dispersion, dehumidifiers and cooling fans installed in the preparation room, making sure to guide the air on stage when performing, ensuring better air quality. 

The show is a perfect fusion of physical scenography and props, lighting effects, video projection and special effects; including fire, water, and three different custom confetti moments. All of these elements combined with Adele's powerful performance make this event one of the most incredible show of this year, which has been defined by Billboard as "utterly and breathlessly spectacular". 

Show Director: Matt Askem 

Creative Director: @kimgavin8  

Executive Producers: Jonathan Dickins & Rose Moon 

Production Director: Paul English 

Production Design: @stufishstudio 

Lighting Design: @coryfitzgerald  

Magic Consultant: @roblakemagic  

Video Content: @treatment_studio  

Staging and scenery built by: @taittowers. Props & special effects built by @artem_sfx , @jemfxpopov & @randoproductions  

Technical Coordinator: Malcolm Birkett. 

@adele 

@caesarpalace