We Were Dreaming At The Eras Tour
“Home is the Era’s tour”
“No, home is wherever Taylor is”
As I walked into Accor stadium, the conversation of the two girls ahead of me seemed to encapsulate the feeling of the 83,000 fans dressed in their most bejewelled outfits, counting the minutes until Taylor Swift would grace the stage.
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The sea of colour covering the floor took their seats exchanging friendship bracelets, making their guesses for the surprise songs and taking photos of each other on the way. Waiting for Sabrina Carpenter to open the monumental show, I could hear fans talking about where they had travelled from to be there in the stadium that night, some from Perth, some from Auckland, NZ. The distance travelled alone is a testament to the love and appreciation from fans of Taylor Swift.
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Sabrina is a pop icon within her own right so it is only fitting she started the show, dressed in her famous platform boots and heart sequinned dress, she performed hits such as ‘Feather’ and ‘because I liked a boy” and with that had the crowd dancing and cheering. She introduced her rendition of ‘Hopelessly Devoted To You” as something special and that it was, the audience entranced as she knelt at the edge of the stage.
Then it was time, the stage clock struck midnight and the countdown hit zero, with the words “it's been a long time coming” the crowd roared, cried, waved as the incredible three and a half hour set began. As the show moved through eras every emotion was being felt in the crowd. Taylor stood on the elevated podium in the sparkling Lover bodysuit catching the light with all eyes on her. The little girl standing on her chair two seats away from me was mesmerised as Taylor put a dazzling blazer on and performed ‘The Man’.
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Moving into the Fearless era, it was incredible to see the entire audience hold their hands in the shape of a heart, a sweet ode to the 2010 tour and a show of the mutual love between artist and fans. The evermore era saw a 5 minute standing ovation following the incredible performance of ‘champagne problems’ and without missing a beat the show moved into the reputation era, the sound of snakes hissing and big green scales projected on the stadium screens were met with loud cheering and screaming from the audience. It seemed she had successfully curated the perfect setlist for every fan.
The Red Era began and looked to be straight out of the 22 music video I remember so vividly from as a pre-teen, the whole crowd danced and sang loudly to hits including ‘We Are Never Getting Back Together’ and ‘I Knew You Were Trouble’ before the emotional rollercoaster of ‘All Too Well’ and the crowd loudly shouting “f**k the patriarchy”.
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Swift twirled and spun her way through the folklore era announcing “we brought the folklore cabin to Sydney!”. The attention to detail throughout the show adds to the unreal atmosphere. The show never ceases to capture the attention of the audience, even when Swift is not on stage the transitions between eras left me in awe.
1989 began with Swift strutting down the 75 metre stage to ‘Style’ and interacting with the crowd throughout ‘Blank Space’ and ‘Shake It Off’. The era ended with ‘Bad Blood’ and the incredible pyrotechnic effects which had the audience in astonishment.
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The surprise songs did not disappoint (how could they ever?) on Night Three with Swift opening the set with a mashup of ‘Is It Over Now?’ And ‘I Wish You Would’ on guitar before moving to the piano and performing ‘Haunted’ and ‘exile’. The sentiment from the crowd was that we won! Taylor then dove into the stage and swam her way into the final era, Midnights. The perfect finale to an already perfect set. The calibre of this performance was unlike anything I have and probably will ever see whilst the lovely fans made the night even more enjoyable. The era’s tour truly takes fans through each album as Swift pulls pieces and memories from her past self and past tours whilst creating a spectacle unlike any other.
