The Eras Tour | TTPD | Outfit 1
The Tortured Poets Department Section, Version 2
Worn On: 5/9/24 // Paris, France
the commentary
For my own predictions post guessing at tour designers for The Tortured Poets Department set on the Eras Tour I noted: “When it comes to designers, I feel Vivienne Westwood would excel at this assignment.” The theatricality, the dramatics, the corsetry, the Britishness of it all (that cavalry / Black Parade moment). It’s the perfect style match and I’m so happy that Taylor and team fully hit the nail on the head when it came to selecting the right design partner for this moment.
The white colour of the gown ties into the established colour-leached palette of #TTPD while also adding to line of similar white gowns she wore for the 2024 Grammys announcing the album and in the album’s lead single music video “Fortnight”. There’s of course the wedding gown comparison, particularly for the way the skirt seems to mimic the gathers of a bride making a harried exit after being left at the altar. The way her lyrics are scrawled all over the garment also seems to combine Taylor’s emotive vulnerability in wearing her heart on her sleeve (and centering the ownership of her work) while also reading a little like the scribbling psychosis from The Shining when a single phrase was repeated in a typewritten manuscript. A part of me wonders if there will be additional variants of this skirt with other TTPD lyrics as we saw on the backs of the different album variants and Taylor’s grief playlist titles.
It also feels notable to me that this is an area in Taylor’s costuming that is absent of her signature sparkle. Sequins aren’t just a glittery aesthetic that Taylor loves to wear, but they also serve a function for stage to draw eyes to a performer and catch the light. In the same way she’s said that she can show us lies when “the lights refract sequin stars off her silhouette every night” in bravely going on stage every weekend amidst trying to heal a broken heart I also think there was a lot of catharsis and healing in performing these songs, her proudly owned body of work, for tens of thousands every weekend.
With near exclusivity across all tour costumes, it isn’t a surprise that for the newest addition to the Eras Tour set that Taylor would once again commission Christian Louboutin to custom design new styles for The Tortured Poets Department set. Both her costumes and their chosen accessories do a brilliant job segmenting each era into its own iconic visual timeslot. The Western-style flat boots for the Fearless set and the ready-to-wear lace up oxford flats for the Red set are both visual nods to the original time period of that album.
To Vogue, the designer said, “Joseph [Cassell, Taylor’s stylist] and Taylor were very instrumental in communicating all the different acts, and having shoes that reflect the genre she wore then with an updated modern twist … “For The Tortured Poet Departments era, we created a custom last based on archival styles that represent the Victorian theme.”
Over the course of the Eras Tour, Louboutin "created over 250 pairs for the superstar—including 60 new pairs for her European leg alone” according to Christian Allaire for Vogue.
The other TTPD custom pair are a strappy, silver heel reminiscent of ballroom shoes - perfect for when Taylor wears them during “I Can Do It With A Broken Heart”.
Louboutin previously also provided all the shoes on Taylor’s reputation stadium tour.
Many more thoughts to come on the newly added Tortured Poets set to the Eras Tour, but it feels noteworthy with this necklace to take a moment and track the progression of VW as an Easter Egg.
Back in January, Taylor threw us an intentional Easter egg red herring courtesy of a candid outfit while out to dinner with Blake Lively. Her ensemble (a velvet olive green dress and leather boots adorned with snakes) screamed reputation (as she knew it would be perceived as such) but the hidden clue all along was the VW bag she was carrying.
The bag in question featured VW’s iconic 'orb’ logo which we also see here on this choker. The orb, to VW, was meant to be a take on the Sovereign orb of the British Royal Family and a cheeky reference to Vivienne’s self-described title of “queen” of fashion.
We also saw one of Vivienne Westwood’s ruffled shirts pop up in the “Fortnight” music video as Taylor received electroshock therapy for her perceived descent into madness.
And now we see this designer on the Eras Tour stage, bringing together the Clara Bow-esque choker accessorizing from Taylor’s 2024 Grammys appearance full circle.
It also doesn’t escape my notice that Taylor would opt to use the designs of one of the most well know British designers in the stage incarnation of what she dubbed Female Rage: The Musical from an album that achingly documents two high profile splits from British men.
the clothes
* Not available for purchaseFeature Photo by Kevin Mazur/TAS24 via Getty Images