Live: Taylor Swift brings Reputation Stadium Tour to Indianapolis, breaks Attendance Record
September 26, 2018
Words: Nicole Cooper; Photos: Reggie Edwards
For her 13th show in Indianapolis, which also happens to be her lucky number if you don’t already know, Taylor Swift filled Lucas Oil Stadium with so many fans they broke the attendance record for the building.
Swifties, as her fans are called, packed the stadium, many in costume. There were so many people dressed in outfits that correlated to different song lyrics, from party outfits for “New Year’s Day,” Grandmaster outfits from the Red era, multiple shirts with Swift’s cats plastered on them, and even one guy inexplicably dressed as Olaf from Frozen.
The mood was excited and upbeat as the Reputation tour kicked off with Charli XCX. She warmed up the crowd with some of her well known hits, such as “Boys” and “Fancy.”
Right after her set, Camila Cabello graced the stage sporting a Colt’s #1 Jersey. Swift spared no expense not only for herself but for her opening acts.
Both Charli XCX and Camila Cabello had decent levels of stage production with lights and images projected on the giant screens towering behind them. Cabello even had her own team of dancers, complete with multiple Latin dance breaks, backing her throughout her set. From her debut solo album, Cabello performed her “In the Dark,” “Into it,” and of course finished with her hit, “Havana.”
Swift’s portion of the evening started off with an introductory video chronicling some of the drama and struggles that had highlighted her years leading up to the Reputation album. Then, she finally emerged from the stage in a cloud of smoke to start the show with the first song on her album, “Ready for it.” She kept up the fierce, red and black vibe, through “I Did Something Bad,” which includes major fireworks and pyrotechnics.
As she transitioned into a more bubbly and pink-themed part of the show, playing songs like “Love Story” and “Gorgeous,” it became clear that Swift had greatly increased her production value for this tour. She’s always put on a great show, but for the stadium arenas, the screens were bigger, the fire was hotter, and the props were mind-blowing.
One might think that transitioning from arena shows to stadiums would cause some of the intimacy of a show like this to be lost, but in Swift’s case they couldn’t be more wrong. Like the previous tour, she brought back the bracelets that are given to each crowd member that light up in coordination with each song.
She says she does this so that even in a room as big as Lucas Oil Stadium she can see every single person. On top of that, she had two separate side stages that took her to different corners of the room, where she played a couple of different songs, giving everyone a chance to see her up close and personal.
When she returned to the main stage she sat down at her piano and seemed to get a little teary-eyed as she talked to the crowd about what it meant to her to be playing in such big places and to have so many fans that have grown up with her and her music. The surprise song of the note was “Long Live,” basically a love letter to her fans and the memories of touring.
Finally, she ended the show with her stage-rocking hit “This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things,” complete with the Gatsby house projected behind her and a huge fountain on stage.
It was the perfect icing on the cake. I didn’t think Taylor would be able to top her last tour but it seems that with age and increasing fame, she only gets better and better at what she does.
-Nicole Cooper