With a set over three hours of nonstop grandeur in a sold-out stadium, no one puts on a show quite like Taylor Swift. On May 12th, Taylor Swift took the stage in front of over 70,000 adoring fans at Lincoln Financial Field on the opening night of her three-part weekend in Philadelphia. After five years without a Philly show, Swift’s homecoming show in Pennsylvania was long awaited. Swifties took things very seriously and dressed to the nines for the occasion. The crowd gleamed and glittered with each fan decked out in sequins from head to toe. Everyone’s arms were adorned with handmade friendship bracelets after fans had gotten there hours early to trade amongst one another.
It would be the understatement of the century to say that it was difficult to get tickets to The Eras Tour. If you managed to fight tooth and nail for seats to any of Swift’s shows, you are in for the night of a lifetime. The Eras Tour delivers not just a concert but an incredible experience unlike anything before. Including songs spanning nine albums, The Eras Tour took lifelong Swifties down a rollercoaster ride through memory lane. Seamlessly flowing from one era to the next, Swift wrapped up seventeen plus years of music into one cohesive story from beginning to end.
The night started off with a lively and dynamic performance by up and coming artist Gayle, most well known for her song “Abcdefu,” which blew up on social media last year. Following her was an melodic set by the lovely and ever-talented Phoebe Bridgers. In a melancholy haze by Phoebe Bridgers’ harmonious voice, it almost went unrecognized that lead singer of The 1975, Matty Healy, was on stage playing guitar for her set. Phoebe Bridgers made sure to close with just as much energy and excitement as she started with before making way for Taylor Swift to take the stage.
In a fluid moment of breathtaking performance, the pop sensation materialized on stage surrounded by the most alluring group of dancers. And so the journey begins. Opening with songs from her Lover era, an elegant album with tales of loving and living unforgivably, the audience was immediately encapsulated in the journey to come. The stage lit up with flamboyant color and Taylor Swift invited the crowd to consciously choose to experience the moment with an ever-being presence. Everyone was in the here and now.
Pivoting back in time to ubiquitous high school anthems from her 2008 album, Fearless, suddenly the whole crowd was transported to the bleachers at a homecoming football stadium. With songs like “Love Story” and “You Belong With Me,” the crowd shouted along to stories of joyous youth and teenage heartbreak. Effortlessly transitioning to Evermore, Swift doubled down on the nostalgia factor by starting this next era with “tis the damn season”. Tugging on loose threads of time with an ache so deep to the core, this era ended harping on a feeling of insatiable yearning.
With a cacophony of hissing snakes and stiletto-steps on marble floors, Swift began her Reputation era. Easily her edgiest album, Reputation follows a vengeful path. The dancers put on a tantalizing performance of a scorned heart in perfect unison with Swift’s masterful lyricism. Fiery passion overtook the stage with each song. But before going full on “Vigilante Shit,” Swift transitioned into another throwback from her soon to be re-released album, Speak Now. After thoroughly demonstrating love borderlining loathing, Swift briefly switched up the tone to blissful butterflies with her song “Enchanted.”
This enjoyable immaturity was continuously celebrated through the beginning of her Red era. Songs like “22” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” demonstrated an adolescent affection only found by experiencing life as a young adult. While wondrously cheerful to start, the Red era could not go complete without absolutely consuming the hearts of everyone in the crowd with her ten minute re-release of “All Too Well.” Fans alike screamed pained poetics with an undying commitment to the unified experience of love and loss. Without too much time to wallow in the heaviness, the show kept moving along to one of Taylor Swift’s more recent albums, Folklore. Swift shared with the audience the sentiment that weaved the tales of Folklore and the fun she had developing the characters. Each song flowed flawlessly like her billowing white gown as she pranced around the stage. Making way for the final retrogression of the evening, it was time for the 1989 era. Including upbeat radio classics like “Shake It Off” and “Blank Space,” Swift glittered as she danced.
With not one bit less charisma or vitality as when she started with her Lover era, Taylor Swift carried the night to a close with her most recent album Midnights. Gliding around the stage on cotton candy clouds, the last era of the show was a lavender dream. Performing a medley of songs from Midnights, the mood varied from self-deprecating bedroom pop “Anti-Hero,” all the way to woman-scorned “Vigilante Shit,” and scheming criminal “Mastermind.” Throughout the entirety of the evening, Taylor Swift did not miss a beat as she paved the road down the path of her musical legacy. Illuminating the deepest darkest emotions she felt in her bedroom under a hollow moon, sunshine pouring through a girlish daydream. Taylor Swift continues to make leaps and bounds to build her prized empire from within a passionate heart. Her love for the music and fulfillment performing is ever-present within each moment she’s on stage. If there would be one takeaway from Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour it would be that it’s only a matter of time before Swift masterminds another astonishingly crafted tour. Taylor Swift has perfected what she does down to a science. Following the tour, her next era awaits.
