The audience shouted for water, lay on the floor and wrote appeals to the singer in an attempt to quench their thirst during a show in Rio de Janeiro
I was at the first show of singer Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour in Brazil, along with more than 60 thousand people. From inside the Nilton Santos stadium, Engenhão, it was possible to see the emotion, the crying and the desperation for a glass of water. The death of the young Ana Clara Benevides, 23 years old, shocked the artist and her fans on the night of a historic, but very difficult show.
“Water, please”
Fans used digital signals on their cell phones asking Taylor Swift for water. In the middle of a song she saw the request and immediately afterwards she threw a bottle of water at the fan. Another girl, aged 23, died after feeling ill. A historic and tragic night. pic.twitter.com/xDbXD04rst
— Daniel Weterman (@DanielWeterman) November 18, 2023
Everyone was forbidden to bring water into the stadium. There were rubbish bins at the access gates and people were forced to throw away the bottles. Either I got it first, or I threw it all away, or it didn’t fit at all. In the queue, members of the organization were warned that it was not possible to enter even with fans, an object brought to relieve the heat.
Many people remained inside for more than six hours, counting between the opening of the gates and the end of the show. With intense heat and a thermal sensation of 60ºC, water has become a rare and controversial commodity among the public. Inside the stadium there was only water for sale before Taylor’s show. During the presentation there was no one to be seen selling the product.
Between one song and another, the cry “water” was the one that was heard the most. People asked to quench their thirst and raised their hands when they saw any security or support staff. Many sat down, lay on the ground, stopped enjoying the show and had to leave because they felt sick from the heat, thirst and tiredness.
Water began to be distributed only when the singer herself called from the stage. She stopped the show and got up from the piano when she saw a group of people asking for water with a digital sign on their cell phones. Taylor Swift apologized to her fans. “If someone says he needs water when it’s hot, it’s because he really needs it,” she said.
On the left side of the stage, a few meters from the railing, a fan used the digital sign to write “water please” while the artist sang All too well (All very well). Taylor made the sign and then threw a water bottle at the girl, who wrote “thank you.”
The people around started fighting over the bottle and took turns drinking the water, in an act of desperation to quench their thirst mixed with the desire to touch an object thrown by the idol.
Fans celebrated attending the first show of the tour in Brazil. The singer had only been in the country in 2012, for a pocket show, and began the performance moved by the homage paid to Christ the Redeemer the night before. Inside the stadium, people exchanged bracelets: a fan practice to represent friendship. The news of the death of Ana Clara Benevides, 23, did not circulate within the show and was only confirmed after people left Engenhão.
There was solidarity to distribute water to those who felt ill. The difficulty was that there were only enough cups for those on the grid, and even then there weren’t enough for everyone. The solution was to pass from hand to hand to alleviate the situation. The singer herself showed tiredness at the end of the show, sweating after a sequence of choreography and costume changes in the heat. She finally thanked us and left smiling.
Source: Terra
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
