Taylor Swift wows Auckland fans
KARL DRURY
Taylor Swift's first New Zealand show, part of her Speak Now world tour, went off with a bang in Auckland.
REVIEW: Taylor Swift is a magical fairy princess. At least thats what a pretty high percentage of the 12,000-odd punters who witnessed the pop stars first ever New Zealand show seemed to be saying last night as they left Aucklands Vector Arena.
Are they right? Well, that depends on whether you believe in fairies, but Swift certainly knows how to cast a spell.
She opened with Sparks Fly; she has done for most shows on this world tour. In fact the Speak Now-heavy set list doesnt look like its changed much over the past 90-odd dates.
But that can be simply put down to the scale of this performance. It is not a gig; it is not even a concert.
Taylor Swift has created a two-hour long show that throws everything at the audience aerial performers falling from inside oversized bells, fireworks, moving set pieces, a giant snow globe, costume changes and a dance troop.
There is no room for improvisation, and thats okay because what you get instead is a polished, slick beast that is really quite jaw-dropping at times.
All the favourites were there The Story of Us, Back to December, You Belong With Me and although it was sometimes hard to hear her over the screaming fans, vocally, Swift sounded like a performer at the top of her game.
It was in the slower, more intimate songs like Dear John and her offering to the upcoming Hunger Games soundtrack, the hauntingly beautiful Safe And Sound that were, in a word, gorgeous.
Not that it would have mattered how she sounded this was a crowd who had waited a long time to see their idol and she probably could have sung Cliff Richard covers and they would have lapped it up.
There were of course the romantic tales like Mine, and the somewhat un-Swift-like vampiness of Better Than Revenge, not forgetting the teenage anthems Me! an and F ifteen that created moments of solidarity for the crowd, the majority of whom wouldnt have looked out of place at a school disco.
And thats part of the joy of Taylor Swift. She sings songs about love, but she tells her stories in a way that really connects with her younger fans.
Theres something honest and timeless and charming about them you could relate it to that boy in your maths class, your best friend or your husband of 50 years.
Even her banter was a delight as she told the crowd how impressed she was with the reception in what she called the most beautiful place on earth.
This is the first time Ive ever stood on a stage in New Zealand and Ive got to say Auckland, this is quite a first impression.
Yes there were moments when the wide-eyed look of shock and awe she gave every time she stopped to catch her breath felt bit trite, but through the showmanship you couldnt help but feel Swift really was a little bit stoked with what New Zealand had greeted her with.
And anyone who walks around the entire stadium shaking peoples hands, hugging fans and high-fiving small children cant be too contrived.
Add in an encore ending with the 22-year-old floating over the crowd in a Juliet balcony singing about a love story reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet while glitter showers down from the ceiling, and well, it just doesnt get more magical than that.
So the only question that remains is, do you believe in fairies?
- Fairfax NZ News