Limited view seating on the Eras Tour offers behind-the-scenes benefits
Although considered the cheapest seats, the limited view section at the top of the front row offers the best behind-the-scenes view of Taylor Swift’s major “Eras Tour” production.
Limited-view seats are located slightly backstage, so concertgoers can’t see the main strip under the set’s giant LED wall. For Swift’s show, that means they can’t see “The Man’s” office, the “Speak Now” ballet intro, the “Red” dance with Tamiya Lewis, the “Look What You Made Me Do” showcase, the “Folklore” cottage, the “Evermore” piano and dancer Karen Chuang’s “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” flag-waving routine.
On the left side of the stage, from the audience vantage point, you can see the cast and crew (including Swift) coming in and the production loading and unloading props.
Madalena Neves is a Portuguese Swiftie who bought her ticket with limited visibility the night before the second show in Lisbon.
“This is better than not going,” she said. “I cried when I came here. I’m going to cry throughout the whole show. It’s a dream come true.”
My experience with limited vision
On a Wednesday in Portugal, I looked into last-minute tickets to see Swift’s performance at the Estádio da Luz on Saturday. (As with other concerts I’ve attended in Australia and Europe, Swift’s team did not issue me a press pass.)
A ticket to the private section was available for $80.87. The 300th floor gallery was the second best experience I had attending the show (out of a dozen times) because I was able to observe the ecosystem of production crew, cast members, security guards and first responders at work as Swift swept through her 11 eras.
From the perspective high in the clouds, you can see Swift’s team excitedly entering as Ice Spice’s “In Ha Mood” blares through the stadium. At the end of the lineup of dancers and instrumentalists is a “cleaning cart” being pushed by some of the production members. The cart rolls up to a black staircase, visible only to the seats with limited visibility. A worker opens a door and you can see Swift coming out in her “Lover” bodysuit and Louboutin heels.
Between eras, performers run in and out of the black tents on either side of the stage to change outfits. Their sweaty garments are thrown into a pile that is sterilized and hung by two workers. Dancers stretch and dance before each number, some slapping each other on the back as they wait in the wings to perform. Before dancer Kevin Scheitzbach slid onstage for “22” in Portugal, he pulled his shirt to the side and stuck out his tongue, poking fun at bassist Amos Heller.
Production dismantles the set of “The Man” and places the pieces on a cart as if playing a 3D game of Tetris. Moving blankets are placed over the “Look What You Made Me Do” boxes before the nine containers are pushed down the ramp. The “Midnights” clouds are also rolled down.
Floor openings and security measures
As Swift exits the descending floor platform, she holds a smiling pose until her body is about halfway down, then she quickly hands over her guitar and jumps out of view.
A giant screen on the side of the stage shows everything that fans with limited visibility miss on the main stage. From the high observation deck, you can see the performers and props come and go through the stage openings.
Security guards hand out cups of water to fans. When a fan needs help, rescue workers hold their yellow and orange highlighters high in the air and somehow weave through the thousands of fans packed like sardines on the ground. From the higher vantage points, security guards can be seen moving fans to a safe area. During the Portugal season, when Swift formed a heart shape with her hands during the “Fearless” era, two workers picked up a fan who may have overheated in the crowd.
During “Who’s Afraid of Me?” the reflective silver floating platform comes in through a hole in the stage. After “Down Bad,” the platform returns to the marked area and descends into the stage, but not before a crew member works feverishly to untangle and remove the pole that Swift is clinging to as she screams out “Who’s Afraid of Me?”
Moments later, another floor area opens up to reveal dancers Kameron Saunders and Jan Ravnik on the red-lipped sofa. In Lisbon, Ravnik quickly tapped Saunders on the shoulder and posed before the platform rose to the stage.
At the end of the show, the dancers storm off the stage as Swift walks and waves to the screaming fans. Confetti falls to the floor. Cones are placed along the various slots in the floor and the production begins dismantling the stage.
How much does a “cheap seat” cost?
Lisbon was possibly the last city with a double-digit price tag.
Resale tickets for the limited view section of the Eras Tour start at $1,852 in the U.S., according to StubHub.com. In Amsterdam, a limited view ticket costs $478, in Warsaw, Poland, $349, and in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, $322.
Swift still has dozens of shows to go before she officially ends this era of her career on December 8.
More: Taylor Swift to end record-breaking Eras Tour in December, singer announces
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Follow Taylor Swift reporter Bryan West on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
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