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Project

ARIA Theater

The 1,840-seat theater is styled after a traditional opera house and features one of the largest proscenium stages in North America

Lead Contact

Project Details

Project Partners
Pelli Clarke Pelli & HKS
Owner
MGM Mirage
Location
Las Vegas, Nevada
Completion Date
Area
165,000 ft²
Number of Seats
1,840
Project Awards

AISC, IDEAS2 National Certificates of Recognition, 2011

aria_1
ARIA Theater in Las Vegas. Courtesy Perini Construction

Overview

Custom built for Cirque Du Soleil’s Viva ELVIS show, the award-winning Viva ELVIS Theater at ARIA Resort is the seventh permanent venue in Las Vegas for Cirque du Soleil. The 1,840-seat, 165,000-gross-square-foot theater is styled after a traditional opera house featuring one of the largest proscenium stages in North America, measuring 20,000 square feet and reaching a height of more than 100 feet.

We provided structural design services to Pelli Clarke Pelli and HKS for the theater, which was completed in 2009.

Highlights

  • Within the all-steel structure, a technically advanced theatrical system exists. The two-seating-level auditorium features 28-foot-long cantilever balcony trusses designed to a stringent vibration criteria, while remaining shallow enough to maximize headroom for the lower seating area.
  • A façade portraying undulating ribbons and gills was formed by curved structural steel supporting metal deck cladding; a system that provides visual appeal while remaining cost effective. Curved steel members included both wide flange and hollow structural sections with differing radii of curvature, the tightest measuring nine feet.
  • Completely designed and constructed in less than three years, the entire structural package for the fast-track project was drawn in Revit from schematic design through construction administration.

Capabilities