Taylor Swift Show Review Sydney, Australia

by Cassie Jones

“I started getting ready at 11 today! Do you want a friendship bracelet? Ticketek is my number one public enemy! I cannot believe we’re finally here”. These are just a few of the infamous phrases I heard from Taylor Swift’s fans the ‘Swifties’ from all around Australia attending the Eras Tour Sydney Night 3 at Accor Stadium on the 25th of February. As I walked into Accor Stadium on the warm Sunday afternoon, I was surrounded by 83,000 passionate fans; arms adorned with friendship bracelets and tasselled dresses paired with sparkly cowboy boots and contagious smiles as they skipped their way to their seats for a night of fighting dragons with Taylor Swift.

We began the night of all nights and Accor was blessed with the presence of opening act Disney Channel actress-turned superstar Sabrina Carpenter. Sabrina performed hits off her infamous third album Emails I Can’t Send such as Because I Liked a Boy and Tornado Warnings; two heartfelt tunes about the trials and tribulations of loving and falling in love, Feather, an energetic, upbeat hit about finally getting over a breakup, Already Over a classic song “for anyone who’s ever been in a situationship” and Fast Times another single of Sabrina’s that had people dancing around in their seats. Sabrina then sank to the eras stage floor to pay tribute to the lovely Olivia Newton-John with an emotional rendition of Hopelessly Devoted to You for Australians everywhere. Sabrina finished off her iconic set by stating to the audience that she had no more songs left, mouthing to the camera “time to sleep, goodnight, guys” before beginning her last and most well-known song Nonsense. Throughout her touring journey, Sabrina has performed infamous outros of this song which is truly filled with just that… nonsense. Fans worldwide have made a spectacle of the event, wondering what Sabrina would say next; Sydney being no different. We were all eagerly anticipating the outro for Sydney Night 3 which may be a little risqué to include here in writing, but nonetheless had our jaws’ drop to the floor. Sabrina Carpenter is a perfect example of what music would sound like if it was written in a sparkly glitter pen; full of energy, passion and girlhood and we were grateful to have her on Australian grounds for the first time since 2014.

The anticipation grew as You Don’t Own Me by Lesley Gore began playing over the stadium speakers as the infamous countdown appeared on the screen; signifying 2:23 seconds left until Miss Taylor Swift took to the stage. The atmosphere was unlike anything I’ve ever observed; friends holding onto each other’s arms, phones at the ready filming the countdown on the screen, arrays of screaming and clapping coming from different ends of the stadium; it was chaos to say the least but was all made worth it when Taylor’s ‘eras’ introduction began playing and the lights dimmed.

The first era, the Lover era began with Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince. Taylor’s podium rose high into the air, her pink and gold bodysuit glimmering in the stadium lights, the high energy of Taylor and her dancers making itself apparent. Taylor’s ability to interact with the crowd and receive interactions in return was astounding to me; in Cruel Summer Taylor began the show by asking the crowd if they “knew the lyrics to this bridge”; the stadium erupted into song alongside Taylor.

The transition from Cruel Summer to The Man saw Taylor acknowledge there are 83,000 people in the stadium tonight, making her feel powerful; “you’re kind of making me feel like… I’m the man”.

The Lover era saw Taylor’s infamous light-up bracelets in all colours of the rainbow during her anthem You Need to Calm Down, Taylor asking the crowd to “let me see your hands!” as the crowd was doused in rainbow. Taylor proceeded to move onto slower songs to end the era such as title track Lover and The Archer which left the stadium and myself in pure awe.

“We’re about to take a journey through 18 years of music!” Taylor stated as the second era Fearless began. Taylor took to the stage in a stunning gold tasselled dress, representing that of her iconic dresses in the 2009 Fearless era. Taylor transported herself and us back to her sophomore album through classic hits such as Love Story, her first big hit, You Belong with Me and title track Fearless, filled with iconic moments such as the 13 on the hand in marker, twirling around on the stage and hand-hearts raised to the air by every patron and Taylor herself during Fearless.

We then took a leap into the future into Taylor’s ninth studio album Evermore, which was created on the second day of the dreaded pandemic that changed the world. Taylor channelled her creative energy into 5 new albums throughout the pandemic, Lover, Folklore, sister album and current era Evermore, Midnights and announced her newest album The Tortured Poets Department to be released on April 19th. Taylor began the Evermore era with hits such as ‘Tis the Damn Season and Willow, a dark and enticing track filled with mystery and wonder as Taylor and her dancers glided further down the catwalk, draped with velvet coats that trailed along the floor. There was not a dry eye in the room as Marjorie; an emotional track about Taylor’s grandmother was played, coupled with the setting sun over Accor Stadium; a truly beautiful and magical sight and one I was grateful to be a part of. “We have some major musical catching up to do… we basically play for 17 days straight” Taylor joked to the audience right before sitting down at the moss- covered grand piano to the right side of the stage to play the well-known song Champagne Problems, asking the audience to sing along. What happened next truly felt like a fever dream that I also had no choice but to participate in: a two- minute-long round of applause that left Taylor speechless, mouthing to the crowd “what are you doing?!” once the applause stopped, it soon started back up. The appreciation, respect and adoration Taylor has earnt from Swifties was remarkable and one of the greatest relationships I have had the pleasure of being a part of. The Evermore era ended with Tolerate It, yet another emotional and heart-wrenching performance.

I truly don’t think anyone could’ve prepared me for hearing Taylor Swift’s 7th studio album Reputation begin playing right after Evermore; they truly couldn’t have. As soon as the snake began slithering across the screen to commence the Reputation era; the crowds, including me, were on their feet once again, an array of screams from each corner of the stadium. Taylor began her revenge era with the hit single Ready for It where she truly showed her performance skills and ability to encapsulate an audience with her visuals; Taylor and her dancers levelled on rising and falling platforms in the middle of the stage. The visuals were raw, dark and fuelled by envy: nothing but black, red, dark greens and dark blues displayed on the screen and the stage. This was apparent throughout Delicate in which Taylor really took on a “play on words” approach, each jump and step on the stage resembling broken glass; once connected, shattered the stage, a way for the nosebleed viewers to have a way of seeing the bigger picture of the story. This era of Taylor’s life symbolised the good, the bad and the ugly; having to rise from the death of losing your Reputation to truly figure out how to be alive. This heartfelt performance was then followed by one of the most iconic transition pieces I have ever had the privilege of hearing: Don’t Blame Me into Look What You Made Me Do. Taylor was adorned with a red one-piece bodysuit embossed with red and black rhinestones in the shape of a snake, a true testament to her power, strength and confidence. The only critique I have on the Reputation era is that four songs is not enough.

It was then time for the Speak Now era; an era full of princess dresses, romance, enchantment and glitter; an era of hopeless devotion and fantasising about love. Though this was Taylor’s shortest era with only two songs: Enchanted and Long Live, this era has been a crowd favourite since the sophomore album was released in 2010 and then re-recorded in 2023. The slow guitar picking rang out amongst the stadium as stepped onto the stage, walking down the catwalk with a sparkling Cinderella gown as the stadium grew dim, Taylor’s signature wristbands around the patrons’ wrists lit up the stadium in several hues of purple; it magical to witness all the shapes and colours making their way around the stadium. The second song Long Live, newly added to the Speak Now era after Taylor’s version was released, was written as a tribute to Taylor’s fans and celebrates the experiences, friendships, and achievements she had during the Fearless era of her career and her first headline tour. The crowds and stands truly went wild as Taylor and her fans stood together with shaking hands, this moment to be remembered in the back of fans’ minds for a lifetime. I felt like I was immersed into a whole other world: a world full of Taylor and her Swifties.

The Red era is probably one of the most infamous eras of Taylor’s career. The Red era was essentially the beginning of Taylor discovering a new sound, blending in pop with her country roots, creating a new name for herself. The era began with ‘22’ an absolute classic for every 21-year olds’ birthday party & a very special moment in the Eras tour. Taylor and her dancers strutted down the catwalk, adorned with a t-shirt that says, “not a lot going on at the moment”, to give one lucky young fan the hat on top of her head. It was a beautiful moment to witness, this little girl by the name of Lily, a Taylor super fan on social media. We Are Never Getting Back Together and Trouble had all members of the audience, regardless of age (including myself), up dancing and singing; guilty pleasure songs, what can I say? One of the most mesmerising moments of all the Eras was All Too Well the 10- minute version. I unfortunately cannot lie and say that this song did not have me in tears because it most certainly did (but that information is neither here nor there). 10 minutes of Taylor Swift, a guitar and the quietest stadium I have ever witnessed until patrons got to scream “F*CK THE PATRIARCHY!” fake snow and barely visible skyscrapers poking out of the dusk sky, and it was one of the most beautiful moments in all of music history.

Folklore: an album written during the pandemic that was “an escape from my own life” Taylor stated right after singing the opening track to the era, The 1. This was an era I was most excited to see live as it was an album full of storytelling and make believe filled with characters living in their own universe; something we hadn’t seen from Taylor in her career thus far. Taylor performed hits off the album such as Betty, The Last Great American Dynasty, August paired with Illicit Affairs, My Tears Ricochet and Cardigan. All these songs were sung within the Folklore Cabin, a piece of the Folklore universe that signified the homes Taylor was talking about, first debuted at the Grammy’s and now an integral part of her set. The Folklore era was mesmerising, full of wonder. I stood there in awe for the entire era, wondering how powerful and talented someone must be to imagine an entire alternate universe and write an entire album upon people who don’t even exist.

The pace of the evening was brought back up with the 1989 era: an album named after the year Taylor was born and had some of the most iconic songs to hit the charts. We started off with Style, an absolute classic. Blank Space was the ‘it’ moment of the evening. For history and context, the 2015 1989 tour in Sydney was one of the most iconic moments in pop culture history; Taylor harmonizing with herself, swinging a bat around to hit a pole whilst screaming ‘SYDNEY!’: it was an understatement to say fans (and myself) were eagerly awaiting their chance to scream out ‘SYDNEY!’ to continue the tradition during the bridge once again and my oh my, not a single person in that moment would’ve forgotten what state we were in. The chant was so loud it was heard kilometres outside of the Accor stadium, filmed by random by-standers It was truly the ‘Leave America!’ moment of the Eras tour. We then had the classics Shake it Off, Wildest Dreams and Bad Blood which filled the stadium with the hottest flames known to man; unexpected in the 35°C Sydney heat, but entertaining, nonetheless.

Taylor Swift is infamously known by her ability to surprise crowds, hide easter eggs for future albums years in advance and to overall be a nuisance on stage and this next segment, the surprise acoustic songs was no different to her usual scheming. With a guitar in one corner of the stage and a piano in the other, walking down the catwalk in a yellow dress, Taylor was ready to do some damage; I however was not ready to hear a mashup of the 1989 vault track Is It Over Now? & I Wish You Would, that’s for sure. I’m not going to mention how loud I screamed because some secrets best remain as secrets (I screamed loud). Taylor however was not done and graced the audience of Sydney Night 3 with yet another mashup, so four songs, of Haunted from Speak Now and Exile from Evermore. People worldwide were tuning in through grainy livestreams to hear Taylor sing their favourite song for them to have to go and cross it off their list of ‘songs they’d cry about if they lost’ one girl sat outside the stadium and sobbed into her friends’ arms on TikTok as she lost Exile (we’ve all seen it; I’d be the same). The surprise songs were a well-loved segment in the eras tour.

It was nearing the end of the show, with our last Era being Taylor’s most recent (and Grammy award winning) album Midnights; though the visuals, energy and vibe of the night did not suffer in any way. The era opened with opening track Lavender Haze, the dancers floating around the stage wheeling around lavender clouds which was a real treat to witness. Anti-Hero was next; a track about feeling like the villain. “It’s me, hi! I’m the problem, it’s me!” Midnight Rain came and went, featuring a moment with one of her lead dancers that had the audience cheering. Vigilante Shit was a performance that I almost had to sit down for, Taylor and her dancers adorned in blue bodysuits to begin a chair routine was not on my bucket list of ‘things Taylor would never do’ because she did it and she did it well, the audience was captivated and slightly inquisitive throughout the routine. Bejewelled was a crowd pleaser, an upbeat pop song for everyone to sing and dance to; pair the song with a viral TikTok dance and the audience was having a great time spinning around in their chairs. Mastermind and Karma finished out the Eras tour, along with fireworks, tasselled jackets and the most gratitude any artist has ever had. As Taylor began waving and blowing kisses to the crowd, slowly making her way up the stage, the fireworks continued, putting on a colourful show for the patrons of Accor Stadium; a truly bittersweet way to end the most magical 3 and a half hours I have ever experienced. I looked up at the sky in awe; grateful that I was lucky enough to have the chance to experience the Eras tour in its entirety, surrounded by 83,000 other patrons thinking the exact same thoughts. It was a moment in time where you just sit and think to yourself “this really is life, huh?”

The Eras Tour Sydney Night 3 was truly a reflection of the passion and love Taylor has for not only her music, but her career and her fans. The energy exchange between Taylor and her fans was unlike anything I have ever seen: the little chants throughout different sections of her songs, the dances that were invented, the friendship bracelets that were traded and the friendships that were made warmed my heart. Taylor herself also performed like a superstar without missing a single beat for 3 hours, filled with immense and unmistakeable passion, taking us on a truly magical journey throughout her entire lives’ work and it was a night I, and other fellow Swifties will not be forgetting for a very long time.

Thank you to Frontier Touring for allowing From the Fans to have a front row seat to the most anticipated tour of the year.