Upgraded Fremont Street canopy in Las Vegas gets dress rehearsal
The Fremont Street Experience on Thursday night offered a sneak peek at a $32 million upgrade to its electrified Viva Vision canopy, the largest single video screen in the world, before its official rollout on New Year’s Eve.
Officials flipped the switch and lit the 1,500-foot-by-90-foot canopy shortly after 6:30 p.m., highlighting 3D graphics that Patrick Hughes, the president and CEO of the Fremont Street Experience, warned were “going to blow your mind this evening.”
The canopy is seven times brighter than the previous version with four times the resolution as the result of renovations that began in May. The screen is 16 million pixels, with nearly 50 million energy-efficient LED lights, and accompanied by 600,000-plus-watt surround sound.
“Las Vegas has become a leader in innovative technology and this showcases exactly that type of innovation that we like to bring to our destination,” said Fletch Brunelle, vice president of marketing for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. “It’s immersive, it’s interactive and it’s a great experience for visitors to downtown.”
The upgrades, the first since 2004, were completed in eight sections of roughly 200 feet, and included replacing the screen’s outdated LED lights. Hughes said the project was finished more than a month ahead of schedule.
The canopy, which debuted in 1995, is now ready for another premiere: The Viva Vision show concept “MIXology” will launch to visitors on New Year’s Eve.
Event organizers have described it as “inspired by synesthesia, a perceptual phenomenon where music, art and emotion collide to create an immersive, multisensory experience on a grand scale.”
Completed renovations also included installation of 32 additional video screens roughly 13 feet tall and 5 feet wide on the support columns.
The project was paid for through a public-private partnership involving the city of Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Fremont Street Experience and Fremont Street casino owners.
Contact Shea Johnson at sjohnson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0272. Follow @Shea_LVRJ on Twitter.
