I was in Philadelphia in July of 2011 to attend a Board of Directors meeting for the Bill & Melinda Gates-funded Gateway to College National Network.  I arrived early because I intended to see U2 – playing at the Lincoln Financial Center.  On my way to my hotel, I asked my cab driver how long it would take me to get to the concert.  He responded by asking me if I had a time machine – because I had the wrong date.  For some reason, every opportunity to see my beloved band was interrupted by one unexpected life matter after the other.  With Bono at 63, who knows when he will put the microphone away?

On Friday night, Bono and company played in Las Vegas.  It was the opening night of their act and the opening night of planet Earth’s newest man-made wonder—the Sphere.  So, not only did attendees marvel at the sound of one of the most amazing voices on the planet, but we were also treated to a multi-modal experience that can only be described as unbelievable.  I am constantly accused of having a man crush on Bono.  And here it is in writing – I do.  There are several reasons for this – and the music is only one of them. 

Let’s face it. When Bono’s teachers and family see what he has become, they must be pretty damn proud of themselves.  Everybody wants their kid to be a billionaire, sure, but to do it with such finesse – hanging out with presidents, and world leaders, and changing things along the way.  We don’t see this too often.  In one of his opening songs, the words flashed on the inside of the dome, “It’s Your World, You Can Change It.”  There he goes again, I thought.

This next paragraph will be challenged – but it has to be said.  I am only writing this because I experienced it, and anyone who thinks differently should go to the Sphere before sending thoughts about it.  I have been to the Vatican and seen the ceiling.  Breathtaking and unforgettable, it was.  But the Sphere, which cost $2,300,000,000.00 (billion), would have put Michelangelo out of work in 1512.  The fact of the matter is that the angels on the ceiling don’t move.  If those angels were in the sphere, you’d feel the wind when they flapped their wings.  Just as I felt the wind blowing on the flag, it was also on my face – inside the building – on Friday.

I am amazed by the talents of humans.   The technological prowess of those who built the Sphere, combined with the abilities of those (such as U2) who will take the stage for one marvelous experience after the other, will revolutionize how we see, hear, and literally feel the music.  From the educational lens – our investments in the arts and our investments in having our children access 21st-century technology are so important.  In some school somewhere sits the next generation of Bono, or the next James Dolan (the guy who built the Sphere).