Adele says stage redesign in Vegas plans

“It was the worst moment in my career, by far,” the superstar says in a new interview with Elle magazine, published Monday morning. “By far. I was so excited about those shows. It was devastating.”

The story reports Adele had been up for 30 straight hours before posting the now-famous “gutted” clip January 20, announcing she was pulling the dates. The “Weekends With Adele” show. Since then, the project has been relaunched at the Colosseum beginning Nov. 18 and running through March 24.

Having stated a COVID-19 spike had led to operational delays, Adele went on to say of the show, “There was just no soul in it, The stage setup wasn’t right. It was very disconnected from me and my band, and it lacked intimacy. And maybe I tried too hard to give it those things in such a controlled environment.”

The 34-year-old vocalist hinted at quieter moments in her upcoming restart at the Colosseum. She recalled the dress rehearsal the night before the announcement. She sat at the edge of the Colosseum stage and sang a cappella to the empty theater.

“They could hear me up at the top,” she said. “This would be the best part of the show. For me, and for you. This is what I want.”

Adele addressed the infamous lake being developed for the show, saying it “looked great for a couple of songs, and then didn’t do anything. It was just there.”

Adele also confirmed she is working with the Stufish design company to revamp the show. Stufish has served as lead architect for touring and production shows ranging from the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd and U2; and also such Cirque shows on the Strip as “Viva Elvis” at Aria and “Ka” at MGM Grand.

Having reviewed the design of the fireplace in her home, Adele felt a spark for her Vegas show.

“It’s tiered stone, and I’d been playing over in my head how vast the stage is in Vegas,” Adele told the magazine. “I was like, ‘How do I make a stadium-size stage feel small in that room?’ I noticed all the borders around the fire, and I was like, ‘What if I treat it like a puppet stage?’” She told her design team, “I want that.”

The show is to be a stage adaptation of Adele’s life.

“I want to tell the story of the beginning of my career to now. I’m not gonna give too much about it, but the show grows,” she said. “It’s all about the music, and it’s really, really nostalgic. It’s gonna be really beautiful.”

Bette Midler was also heard from in the piece. She had helmed her own residency at the Colosseum from 2008-2010, a show that was hindered by recession. She said the 120-foot wide stage was “absolutely terrifying.”

Midler recalled she was supposed to arrive onstage a stack of Louis Vuitton luggage, which was actually dwarfed by the vast surroundings. Midler compared the experience to the “Stonehenge” scene in “This is Spinal Tap,” and said the effect was, “Just minuscule on that gigantic stage. We had to fix the luggage, which took weeks. So for the first few weeks I made my entrance riding a donkey.”

No donkey for the Adele show.

The superstar says she will chat up the crowd, instilling her sense of humor and often long-winded yarns. She is confident she’s developing something special.

“I think I’m right to do it right now,” she says. “I know I’m not, like, 60 years old and I haven’t got 20 albums under my belt. But I think my music will work in a show in Vegas.”

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.