Taylor Swift ignites crowd at Rogers Centre in first of 6 Toronto shows

Taylor Swift hit the stage in Toronto for her first show Thursday night, and the first Eras Tour stop in Canada, greeting a sold-out crowd in a signature glittery bodysuit as Swifties rejoiced.

While belting out hit “Cruel Summer,” she asked the crowd to join in on the bridge as she walked down the ramp to the front of the stage. When the song ended she stopped to take it all in, slowly pointing to the crowd around the arena as each section erupted.

““It brings me so much joy to say these words to you – Toronto welcome to the Eras tour!”

Swift acknowledged how Toronto has gone the extra mile to welcome her and says it’s a different experience than she’s had in any other city. 

She called Toronto fans the most generous, welcoming, encouraging and excited. 

The anticipation was palpable around Roger’s Centre leading up to the show, with sequin-clad fans of all ages lined up for hours before the gates opened. 

Every step was marked by a selfie, with spontaneous sing-alongs of a favourite song and periodic eruptions of gleeful cheers.

Toronto has been primed and prepped for weeks ahead of the megastar’s arrival. Streets were temporarily renamed, transit modified and every available advertising surface covered in glittery promotional posters.

As fans entered the sold out arena, packing it all the way to the rafters, it was clear they didn’t need much warming up. A giant screen with a mosaic of Swift photos as a background played behind-the-scenes footage of Swift’s video shoots as hundreds of photos were snapped for posterity.

Friends were being made in the floor seats as they swapped Swift stories and friendship bracelets. 

Gracie Abhrams opens for Swift

Gracie Abhrams had the enormous task of opening the show and the crowd greeted her warmly with ear-piercing screams as she stepped out, guitar in hand, in a flowing white gown. 

She belted out a rousing rendition of “Risk” to kick off her set, with many in the crowd singing along. Every prolonged note and chorus was greeted with applause. 

Between songs, Abhrams acknowledged the efforts of fans to dress in their sparkly best.

As she performed crowd favourite “Let it happen,” fans lit up their phones and filled the arena with thousands of sparkling lights. 

“She’s so talented,” one enthralled fan shouted in between joyous screaming. 

Her set lasted for a little over 30 minutes and included other crowd favourites like “That’s so true,” “I told you things,” and the recently Grammy-nominated “Us,” co-written with Swift.

She ended her set with “Close to you” with the crowd enthusiastically singing along.

After she left the stage there was a brief lull and the lights came on. More photos were taken, more bracelets exchanged and the enthusiasm remained high.

A clock appeared on the stage screen at exactly 7:48 pm, counting down 2:00 minutes to Taylor Time.

Tour production dazzles fans

The production is massive in both scale and complexity. The stage itself is a T-shaped ramp with triangular wings about halfway down. Sections of the stage elevate throughout portions of the show revealing screens with graphics and lights. The stage floor also lights up and changes based on the songs and choreography. 

A massive screen behind the stage ensures the entire arena gets a good view of the idol they came to see. 

Lighting, pyrotechnics and video displays fill in the gaps when Swift is not on stage for brief costume changes.