NEW YORK (AP) — “The Eras Tour has been a lifetime of my life,” Taylor Swift said at a screening of the first two episodes of her new Disney+ docuseries “End of an Era.” “This is crazy.”
Swift spoke to a small audience in New York on Tuesday, one year and one day since she wrapped up the historic Eras Tour. In the room were her parents Scott and Andrea Swift and brother Austin, a select few members of the press (including Hoda Kotb, Willie Geist and Gayle King), as well as her touring dancers, choreographer Mandy Moore, documentary filmmakers Don Argott and Sheena M. Joyce, and several others. The show was briefly interrupted by an alarm as a small fire was extinguished elsewhere in the building.
“The directors really told the stories of not just me, but everyone who was a part of it,” Swift said before taking her place in the crowd.
Here are the key takeaways from the first two episodes of the six-part docuseries, premiering Friday on Disney+. Two episodes will be released weekly until December 26th.
Origin of the Eras Tour
The premiere episode opens in Vancouver, Canada 15 minutes before the final tour date. Swift, standing in a circle with her dancers, gives an impassioned speech, reminding them that the Eras Tour is not just about pieces falling into place. “You put the pieces where they are,” she tells them. It sets the tone for what follows: “End of an Era” is the only behind-the-scenes look at her tour and what drove it.
Swift initially stated that the Eras Tour had two different catalysts. First, her back catalog sold out, which inspired her to undertake a re-recording project that showed her the value of “celebrating your past.” Another reason was the pandemic, which increased the desire to return to live events.
Tickets are in demand
The first episode also notes the incredible demand the tour generated – mentioning Ticketmaster, but not going into detail about the disappointment it caused. The ticket seller sparked outrage in November 2022 when its website crashed during a pre-sale promotion. The company said the site was inundated with both fans and bot attacks posing as consumers to buy tickets and sell them on secondary sites. The disaster prompted congressional hearings and bills in state legislatures aimed at better protecting consumers.
Consequences of a failed terrorist plot
In August 2024, three concerts were canceled in Vienna due to an apparent plot to attack the concerts.
“It's a force to be reckoned with in global culture,” Swift says of the tour in the first episode. “So I never thought we would have a terrorist plot.”
The episode continues with Swift in London, who is preparing to perform for the first time since the cancellation – in less than a week. “We avoided a massacre situation,” she says.
“Being afraid that something will happen” to her audience, she says, “is a new challenge.”
Southport stabbing
About a week before the Vienna events were cancelled, a teenager killed three girls and wounded 10 people in a knife attack at a Swift-inspired dance and yoga class in the English seaside town of Southport. At the time, Swift said she was “completely shocked” by the violence.
As Swift prepares for her first performances since Austria, she mentions the Southport attack and begins to cry as she describes the “little children” who were attacked.
“I'm going to meet some families tonight,” she says, nervously, before reminding herself to “block it out” and go into pop singer mode. She compares this to the need for a pilot to act “calm, cool and collected.” It is later revealed that Swift had been meeting privately with the families of the Southport victims. It's not on camera, but the aftermath is this: Swift is in tears, realizing the show must go on.
Yes, Travis Kelce is here…
Swift's fiancé, Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce, initially sounds soothing over the phone as Swift expresses her anxiety about the London shows and surprise appearance with Ed Sheeran. His telepresence immediately lifts her mood.
“Thank you for making my day,” he tells her. “Some people get IV vitamins,” she replies. “I understand this conversation.”
…Like other special guests
Sheeran and Swift hang out backstage and work through their set in London. Florence Welch also appears in the series. “The character is huge, but the person is soft,” Welch says of his resemblance to Swift. She later describes how she was immersed in the magic of the Eras Tour. Swift is her friend, but when she joined the pop phenomenon on stage, she couldn't help but think, “Oh my god, that's (expletive) Taylor Swift.”
The scene with Sheeran is particularly instructive. She tells him that she is leaving for two months after her trip to London and plans to use the time to go somewhere where no one can find her.
“I don’t want to be hunted down like an animal,” she tells him, admitting that she’s been feeling “hunted” lately.
Band members and dancers take center stage…
Those in and around Swift's orbit tell their stories throughout the first two episodes. Fans will meet Amos Heller, her bassist since 2007. They learn that Mandy Moore, a famous Hollywood choreographer, has joined Swift's tour after Emma Stone asked Swift to work with her. You'll see another choreographer and former dancer, Amanda Bailen, take the stage again. “I don’t want dancers who blend into the crowd,” Swift says of her crew.
Fans will learn more about beloved dancer Cameron Saunders and his story—how he was bullied in his field because of his size, his mother's endless support, and how his brother, professional football player Halen Saunders, paid for his flight to audition for a tour. (Incidentally, Saunders' brother was playing for the Kansas City Chiefs at the time, the same team as Kelce.)
As for Swift's own dancing, she says, “It took me a really long time to get good at choreography.” She doesn't do figure eights – she learns movements depending on the syllable of the song she sings.
… And Swift's team bonuses too.
Swift's decision to give her team bonuses, which totaled $197 million according to People, is highlighted in the series. In the second episode, Swift reveals that she gave each crew member a handwritten letter and sealed it with wax seal. It's a compelling advertisement for Swift's generosity, especially when the camera zooms in on a young production assistant who looks stunned, holding a note and saying he's about to “faint.” The amounts of individual bonuses are not disclosed.
Preparations for the “The Tortured Poets Department” tour preceded the album's release.
You read that correctly. To add a cut from “The Tortured Poets Department” to the tour, Swift and his team “built this top-secret rehearsal room,” she says. The dancers had to learn the choreography without music blaring from the loudspeakers because the album had not yet been publicly released. Keeping surprises secret is serious business.
