Virgin Hotels Las Vegas is scheduled to open March 25. The reimagined and remodeled off-Strip resort features a desert theme instead of the former Hard Rock Hotel’s rock ’n’ roll vibe.
Monday, March 22, 2021 | 2 a.m.
When Virgin Hotels Las Vegas opens its doors for the first time this week, the new off-Strip casino resort will set a new course with a prestigious global brand and a fresh identity at a familiar property.
One of its essential features, the renovated 4,500-capacity theater formerly known as the Joint, will not be ready to make its debut when Virgin arrives Thursday, but that’s irrelevant considering COVID restrictions continue to limit large-scale Las Vegas entertainment events.
But you don’t have to see it to understand that like the Joint did for the Hard Rock Hotel, this theater will help define the Virgin Las Vegas experience.
“The venue is coming along beautifully,” said Bobby Reynolds, senior vice president of AEG Las Vegas, at last week’s sneak peek tour of the property. AEG partnered with the Hard Rock to program the Joint and will continue a similar partnership with Virgin and its ownership company, JC Hospitality. “This place in time right now is obviously unique and has brought a lot of challenges. But over the past year, I haven’t been as optimistic as I am now with where we’re going, how quickly vaccines are getting out there and how low positivity rates have gone.”
AEG has been one of the biggest live entertainment producers in the Las Vegas market for decades, including the co-creation of the Colosseum at Caesars Palace and Celine Dion’s landmark concert residency there. The company is also linked with Resorts World Las Vegas, set to open this summer on the Strip, to build and operate a brand-new 5,000-seat theater.
Journey performs during their first show of their second nine-show residency at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on Wednesday, May 3, 2017.
Reynolds said the Virgin venue is in a great position to continue to be successful because the public can’t wait to return to Las Vegas to see concerts and other big shows.
“I think there is incredible demand on both sides,” he said. “We’ve never gotten more calls from agents and managers wanting to do business, and for the handful of things that have gone on sale in Las Vegas or around the country or the world, demand is through the roof.”
The Theater at Virgin, which could have a new name and sponsorship attached by the time it hosts its first event, has been upgraded with a “significant capital investment” from AEG. Renovations include new flooring and facades, a new VIP space on the main floor, an update on all second-floor suites and an update to the bars on the second and third levels.
The Joint originally opened with a 2,000-person capacity when the Hard Rock Hotel debuted in 1995 and the venue was expanded and upgraded in 2009.
“It’s always had great bones but it needed some love, and we addressed those things,” Reynolds said. “We have some newly imagined VIP spaces and some brand-new VIP spaces … but we didn’t lose any [general admission] capacity. The vast majority of customers will still pay that lower ticket price.”
AEG plans to continue its flexible approach to booking shows in the room, including one-off concerts from artists of almost any musical genre, limited engagements and residencies, comedy performances and more. The big question is when.
“If you asked me weeks ago I would have said mid-September but we get so much new positive news every day,” Reynolds said. “I’m more inclined to think it will happen sooner that that middle part of September.”
