Thirty-two shows have now been scheduled

Adele has addressed the last minute postponement of her Weekends With Adele Las Vegas residency that was set for January through April at The Colosseum and Caesars Palace. For the first time in the months since the pop star revealed the news via Instagram, she tells Elle the decision didn’t come lightly, even though she’d known it was the right one for a week prior to making the announcement.

“It was the worst moment in my career, by far,” she says. “By far. I was so excited about those shows. It was devastating. 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.”

She tells the publication she realized the decision the night before the residency was to initially open. During a dress rehearsal, she felt the 4,300 seat nearly empty room wasn’t intimate enough after singing a cappella unplugged by the side of the stage.

“They could hear me up at the top,” she says as she looked out into the first few rows. “This would be the best part of the show. For me, and for you. This is what I want,” she adds as she motions to an imagined small audience. “And none of that has that,” she adds gesturing to an imaginary Vegas stage behind her.

The pop star, who recently returned to the stage for a two night stand at London’s BST Hyde Park last month, says she was tormenting herself for 30 plus hours over the decision that affected her band, crew, Caesars Palace employees, and the fans. She says the show didn’t feel authentic to her but was “terrified” of letting everyone down by the postponement.

“The first couple of months [were] really, really hard,” Adele says. “I was embarrassed. But it actually made my confidence in myself grow, because it was a very brave thing to do. And I don’t think many people would have done what I did. I’m very proud of myself for standing by my artistic needs.”

Upon the cancelation, she cited COVID and supply chain issues for her reasoning, but it was later revealed it was canceled due to creative issues. Adele says the theatrics, such as the rumored opening “Skyfall” water feature, that were surrounding her on The Colosseum’s massive 7,200 square foot stage were not as elegant as intended.

“[The waterfall] looked great for a couple of songs, and then didn’t do anything. It was just there,” she says.

Adele has since teamed with the British firm Stufish — which are the production designers behind the Rolling Stones 60th anniversary tour — along with director Matt Askerm and creative director Kim Gavin for a stage redesign. She says the company was on board after she drew inspiration from her son Angelo’s fifth birthday party and submitted a stage design she hand drew based on her fireplace.

“It’s tiered stone,” she says of the inspiration from her fireplace, “and I’d been playing over in my head how vast the stage is in Vegas. 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?”

The “Hello” singer says the show will be a bit erratic but will continue to grow.

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

The decision to cancel at the eleventh hour was too late for many fans who trekked the Sin City to see the singer, leaving mixed reactions. The night before the first show was scheduled, she was seen FaceTiming fans who were shopping for merchandise at The Colosseum shop adjacent to the venue’s entrance. Fans who presented a concert ticket to one of Adele’s shows received a gift tote bag with a specifically made T-shirt, magnets and keychain.

The initial run of dates included 24 shows over 12 weeks, but added eight new shows when she announced the rescheduled run last month. A total of 32 shows will be performed between the November 18th kick off and the closing March 25, 2023 concert with a show on Christmas Eve. Tickets are not available for any of the shows as they were only offered via a Ticketmaster Verified Fan Presale and Refunded Fans Presale for those who opted out of hanging onto their initial tickets.