Rush will play all of 2112 and Moving Pictures inside the Sphere, and Australian fans need an alarm for Saturday
Rush will play five nights at the Sphere in Las Vegas in May 2027, performing the albums 2112 and Moving Pictures in full. General tickets go on sale on Friday, 10am Pacific time, which is 2am AWST and 5am AEDT on Saturday 14 November, for a band that only a few years ago many believed had played its last show.
Three things to know
- The dates are 21, 23, 26, 28 and 30 May 2027, under the title "Elevate From the Norm", a line from the Moving Pictures closer Vital Signs.
- Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson are joined by German drummer Anika Nilles and keyboardist Loren Gold, the line-up from their current Fifty Something tour.
- The Fifty Something tour has sold more than a million tickets in the Americas, Europe and the UK, but has no announced Australian dates, so Las Vegas is the nearest confirmed chance to see them.
Rush is taking two of the best-loved albums in rock into the Sphere, the giant LED dome off the Las Vegas Strip.
The Canadian band will perform five shows at the Sphere in Las Vegas on 21, 23, 26, 28 and 30 May 2027. Geddy Lee said the set would mean “playing all of 2112 and all of Moving Pictures”, alongside other songs from across the band’s catalogue. The residency is called “Elevate From the Norm”, from the lyrics of Vital Signs, the final track on Moving Pictures.
An artist presale opened on Wednesday for fans who registered in advance. General tickets go on sale on Friday 13 November at 10am Pacific time: that is 2am AWST and 5am AEDT on Saturday 14 November.
Why does this matter to Rush fans?
Because it was not supposed to happen. Drummer and lyricist Neil Peart died in 2020, and the band’s last tour with him, R40, had ended in 2015. Lifeson had suggested he was finished with the band as he dealt with arthritis, and Lee spent 2024 touring a memoir rather than an album.
Then came Fifty Something, a reunion tour celebrating Peart’s life that began in Los Angeles in June and has, according to the band, sold more than a million tickets across Canada, the United States, Mexico, South America, Europe and the UK. Anika Nilles, a German drummer, composer and producer, sits in Peart’s place; Loren Gold plays keyboards.
Why the Sphere?
The Sphere wraps a high-resolution LED screen up, over and around its audience, and Rush’s music has always leaned on scale and spectacle: 2112 is a 20-minute science-fiction suite about a future where music is banned. Lee said that when he first heard of the venue, he thought it was a shame Rush was no longer touring.
What about Australia?
No Australian dates have been announced for Fifty Something, which the band says will run across several continents into spring 2027. VIP and travel packages, run by Superfan, bundle tickets with accommodation at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas, where a Rush pop-up shop will open; some include a meeting with Lee and Lifeson.
The first question many Australian fans will ask is whether Fifty Something will come south. For now, the band has said nothing either way.
How we got here
The key moments that brought this story into focus. Open any moment for detail.
19762112 released
The album's title suite becomes Rush's breakthrough.
1981Moving Pictures released
Home to Tom Sawyer, Limelight and Vital Signs.
2015R40 tour
Rush's last tour with Neil Peart.
2020Neil Peart dies
Many fans assume the band is finished.
June 2026Fifty Something begins
Lee and Lifeson return with Anika Nilles and Loren Gold, starting in Los Angeles.
5 November 2026Sphere residency announced
Five May 2027 dates in Las Vegas.
What happens next
- Saturday 14 November, 2am AWST / 5am AEDT: general public tickets go on sale (10am Pacific time, Friday 13 November).
- 21 May 2027: the first of five Sphere shows; the last is on 30 May.
- The Fifty Something tour continues into spring 2027; any Australian dates would be announced by the band.
Sources
- VNN
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