Celebrity

Posted on May 10, 2024

Taylor Swift Appeared To Levitate On Stage, And She Seemingly Used A Magician's Trick To Create The Illusion

Tayvoodoo is real confirmed!

by Kristen Harris

BuzzFeed Staff

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Last night, Thursday, May 9, Taylor Swift recommenced The Eras Tour in Paris after a two-month break. She surprised fans worldwide with a lot of key changes to her show — including literally levitating down the stage!

Taylor floats above the stage, singing, as dancers gather around

As part of her new The Tortured Poets Department set, Taylor performed "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" — which includes the lyrics, "So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street." And Taylor took those lyrics literally!

Taylor floats above a circle of dancers onstage

In the middle of the first verse, she appeared to levitate off the stage, rising above her dancers.

in a flowy dress, Taylor rises above the stage

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Like magic, she floated above the stage. But she didn't remain stationary. She moved up and down the stage.

She even spun around!

Taylor spins as she floats, pointing at dancers

Obviously, Taylor isn't actually magical (at least as far as we know), but thanks to my middle school friend's magician phase, I'm pretty sure I know how she accomplished the optical illusion — mirrors!

Taylor on raised platform on stage in a flowing dress printed with music notes, performing with a microphone, dancers in background

There's a science to it. On an episode of his Impossible Science YouTube series, world champion magician Jason Latimer used a similar illusion to deter porch pirates.

Jason puts a package inside the table hatch

In the video, he attached mirrors to a table, making the packages inside it appear invisible. Here's the full video if you want to watch him build it and explain it more in-depth:

So, essentially, I'm fairly certain Taylor was raised up on a platform made of mirrors, so it appeared invisible beneath her.

Taylor Swift performs onstage in a white dress with sheet music print, backed by dancers

Now for how it moved around like that...that might just be actual magic (or maybe it uses a technology similar to the trackless rides at Disney Parks, like Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in EPCOT).

Honestly, it should come as no surprise that Taylor made such big changes to The Eras Tour post-TTPD. In her 2020 Netflix documentary Miss Americana, she said, "Everyone's a shiny new toy for two years. The female artists that I know have reinvented themselves 20 times more than the male artists. We have to, or else you're out of a job."

Taylor singing in a dramatic pose on her levitated platform with dancers behind her

Naturally, the Swifties have been OBSESSED with Taylor's "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" performance.

🚨| TAYLOR SWIFT IS CURRENTLY LEVITATING AT THE ERAS TOUR
— The Eras Tour (@tswifterastour) May 9, 2024

Twitter: @tswifterastour

TAYLOR IS LEVITATING #ParisTSTheErasTour #TSTTPD pic.twitter.com/H8U3PPnWdY
— kaleigh (@kaleighsversion) May 9, 2024

Twitter: @kaleighsversion

Tweet from The Eras Tour Singapore announcing "The ERAS ROOMBA, the moving stage" with emojis

Text in image: "I shouldn't be the only one who wants to get on that ride and levitate like taylor it seems so fun" - social media comment

"you just know as soon as Taylor recorded “i levitate down your street” she said ‘i want to levitate across the stage so we need to figure out a way to make that happen’"

You can watch the full clip of Taylor's "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" performance on Chris Olsen's TikTok here.

Taylor on levitating platform on stage singing into a microphone, wearing a dramatic, flowing dress with sheet music print

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Taylor Swift Appeared To Levitate On Stage, And She Seemingly Used A Magician's Trick To Create The Illusion

Last night, Thursday, May 9, Taylor Swift recommenced The Eras Tour in Paris after a two-month break. She surprised fans worldwide with a lot of key changes to her show — including literally levitating down the stage!

As part of her new The Tortured Poets Department set, Taylor performed "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" — which includes the lyrics, "So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street." And Taylor took those lyrics literally!

In the middle of the first verse, she appeared to levitate off the stage, rising above her dancers.

Like magic, she floated above the stage. But she didn't remain stationary. She moved up and down the stage.

She even spun around!

Obviously, Taylor isn't actually magical (at least as far as we know), but thanks to my middle school friend's magician phase, I'm pretty sure I know how she accomplished the optical illusion — mirrors!

There's a science to it. On an episode of his Impossible Science YouTube series, world champion magician Jason Latimer used a similar illusion to deter porch pirates.

In the video, he attached mirrors to a table, making the packages inside it appear invisible. Here's the full video if you want to watch him build it and explain it more in-depth:

View this video on YouTube

So, essentially, I'm fairly certain Taylor was raised up on a platform made of mirrors, so it appeared invisible beneath her.

Now for how it moved around like that...that might just be actual magic (or maybe it uses a technology similar to the trackless rides at Disney Parks, like Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in EPCOT).

Naturally, the Swifties have been OBSESSED with Taylor's "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" performance.

You can watch the full clip of Taylor's "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" performance on Chris Olsen's TikTok here.

Taylor Swift Appeared To Levitate On Stage, And She Seemingly Used A Magician's Trick To Create The Illusion

Last night, Thursday, May 9, Taylor Swift recommenced The Eras Tour in Paris after a two-month break. She surprised fans worldwide with a lot of key changes to her show — including literally levitating down the stage!

As part of her new The Tortured Poets Department set, Taylor performed "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" — which includes the lyrics, "So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street." And Taylor took those lyrics literally!

In the middle of the first verse, she appeared to levitate off the stage, rising above her dancers.

Like magic, she floated above the stage. But she didn't remain stationary. She moved up and down the stage.

She even spun around!

Obviously, Taylor isn't actually magical (at least as far as we know), but thanks to my middle school friend's magician phase, I'm pretty sure I know how she accomplished the optical illusion — mirrors!

There's a science to it. On an episode of his Impossible Science YouTube series, world champion magician Jason Latimer used a similar illusion to deter porch pirates.

In the video, he attached mirrors to a table, making the packages inside it appear invisible. Here's the full video if you want to watch him build it and explain it more in-depth:

View this video on YouTube

So, essentially, I'm fairly certain Taylor was raised up on a platform made of mirrors, so it appeared invisible beneath her.

Now for how it moved around like that...that might just be actual magic (or maybe it uses a technology similar to the trackless rides at Disney Parks, like Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in EPCOT).

Naturally, the Swifties have been OBSESSED with Taylor's "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" performance.

You can watch the full clip of Taylor's "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" performance on Chris Olsen's TikTok here.

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