Last November, I sat anxiously in front of my mom’s computer with my eyes glued to the screen. Like thousands of other “Swifties”, I was awaiting the start of the presale for tickets to Taylor Swift’s next tour, the Eras Tour. I have been a fan of Taylor Swift since I was six years old, so I was ecstatic to learn she’d be visiting Chicago for the first time in around five years to perform some of my favorite songs.
Shortly after the presale began, though, the now-infamous Ticketmaster crash hit the website, and Taylor Swift fans across the country panicked as they found themselves losing their places in the online queue to get tickets. Some fans were even booted from the Ticketmaster site as they were in the process of picking their seats at the concert they’d be attending. So when my mom informed me to tell me she had gotten tickets after five hours of waiting in the presale, I felt extremely lucky and grateful that I had gotten the chance to attend the Eras Tour.
Before the day of the concert, I had seen reviews, newspaper articles, and photos that all gave the Eras Tour high ratings and made the show look incredible. After going to the tour as it stopped in Chicago, I can agree that the tour definitely deserves its praise. Here are the highlights of my experience!
My Favorite Set Onstage
The sets for each album were so well designed and fit their respective albums so well. Out of all the sets, my favorite was the cabin from the era inspired by Taylor’s eighth album, “folklore.” The cabin had a wooden outline to it, and there was grass on the roof. Behind the cabin, a forest was projected onto the screen. The whole cabin and setup for “folklore” made that portion of the tour feel whimsical and cozy as this era’s aesthetic references nature and escapism.
Mishaps
Being a theater kid, I know how difficult it can be to make sure a show runs smoothly- and there were some pretty funny mishaps at the Eras Tour. While Taylor was performing songs off of her “Lover” album, her microphone stopped working. However, she kept the crowd entertained by screaming into the broken microphone while the team worked on trying to fix the sound error. I also watched as Taylor swallowed a bug onstage in between songs from another one of her albums, “evermore”. Even though she was close to throwing up, Taylor managed to recover and even joked about the mishap, saying, “Oh, delicious” after she swallowed the bug. These mishaps certainly helped to make my Eras Tour experience unforgettable!
My Favorite Costume
On the Eras Tour, Taylor wore a variety of costumes for her different musical eras, such as a sparkly black blazer for her “Lover” set and a flowery ballgown for her “Speak Now” era. She even wore different variations of colors for the same outfit in different cities. My personal favorite costume, though, was a glittering red coat that Taylor wore as she sang songs from her “Red” album. The coat’s color perfectly matched the album, and it was beautiful in the lights onstage.
The Most Memorable Era
On the Eras Tour, Taylor Swift performed songs from each of her ten albums, which she refers to as her “eras”. My favorite album of Taylor’s is “Red”, so I thought I would enjoy that era on the tour best. However, I was surprised when my favorite era from the concert was based on her sixth album, “reputation”. When this album first came out, eleven-year-old me was sad to see that Taylor had moved on from her sparkly pop princess era and was now “going dark” with themes of snakes and revenge. However, now that I’m a bit older, I love “reputation” and how strong of a comeback album it is. I was completely blown away while watching this era at the tour.
The visual effects for this era were incredible! Cracks were projected onto the stage surface when Taylor stepped on the stage as she sang “Delicate”. The light-up wristbands each spectator received were glowing a teal color to match the aesthetic of the album, and the lights on the bracelets pulsed to the music. Smoke shot up from the stage as Taylor performed “Ready For It…?”, and images of snakes and hissing noises were playing on the screen behind the stage. While all of the eras on the tour were amazing, “reputation” was definitely my favorite because there was so much power to the music and the effects. This album is known as Taylor Swift’s comeback album after being portrayed negatively by the media, and getting to hear songs from this album live is an experience that I will never forget.
Surprise Songs
For each show, Taylor performs 2 songs that she picks as a surprise. Each city gets different surprise songs- unless Taylor mixes up the lyrics for a surprise song. Her rule is that if she messes up on a song, she gets to play that song again for a different night of the Eras Tour. My surprise songs were “Hits Different” and “The Moment I Knew.” I was so excited to hear these songs, especially since it was the first time that both were played live!
Overall, my experience at the Eras Tour was spectacular. I feel so lucky and grateful that I got the opportunity to see my favorite artist live. What made the experience even better was getting to go to the show with my mom and my best friend! Whether it was watching fireworks shoot into the sky at the end of the show, witnessing Taylor swallow a bug, or losing my voice while shouting out the lyrics to my favorite songs, the memories I made at this concert are ones that will last a lifetime.
