Taylor Sheesh? Drag act in Singapore soothes post-concert blues for some Taylor Swift fans

For diehard fans recovering from post-concert blues after American pop star Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour in Singapore, Taylor Sheesh was the answer.

The 29-year-old drag queen from the Philippines performed for a nearly sold-out, two-night show in Singapore just a week after Swift left the city state, the only Southeast Asia stop on her world tour.

Dressed in a blonde wig, jewel-encrusted bodysuits and cowboy boots, Mac Coronel, also known as Taylor Sheesh, lip-synched Swift's hits and imitated her dance moves with striking precision for more than 600 fans on Saturday night.

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Sheesh has been impersonating the four-time Grammy award-winning singer since 2017 and has gone to great pains to mimic the superstar, even owning a stunning collection of dresses and boots similar to the 34-year-old American superstar.

"[Before each show], I will listen to Taylor Swift and watch some of her videos to memorise her choreography and refresh my mind," Coronel said.

One of his performances in the Philippines had gone viral in April last year and he has since seen bookings soar, according to Coronel, who uses male pronouns when not in drag.

He said many Swifties who did not manage to land tickets to the pop star's concert or could not afford it would attend his show, the next-closest thing to the full experience. The tickets to Sheesh's show ranged from S$42 to S$125 (US$31.40 to US$93.50).

Swift's decision to skip the Philippines, which Coronel described as "Taylor Swift country" with a huge fan base, was "expected".

"We already expected that Manila would not be included in her tour since there's no stadium or venue that can cater to her big production," he said.

"To be honest, it is very sad and we are very much disappointed in the government of the Philippines because they didn't invest more in stadiums to create bigger venues."

Filipino Swiftie Renee Cu, 25, said: "I love what [Sheesh] does for the fans. Filipinos did not get The Eras Tour but she's bringing it for the fans over there who can't afford to fly here or were lucky enough to get tickets."

Meanwhile, other fans are finding ways to recover from Swift fever. One of the Swifties at Coronel's show, Shayne Arellano, 29, a preschool teacher, said she was suffering from "post-concert depression" a week after Swift's concert.

"It was so exciting to see Taylor [Swift] in the flesh," she said. "It's been one week since I saw her and I'm here to watch Taylor Sheesh just so that I can relive those feelings again."

Another Swiftie at Sheesh's Saturday show, Diane Pascual, 28, a restaurant hostess, said she went for three nights of Swift's sold-out shows in Singapore, splashing some S$6,000 (US$4,484) on outfits, friendship bracelets and tickets but it was not enough.

"I wanted to go for all the Taylor events and this was the only time I could get a Saturday off and I want to meet all the Swifties. It's been so fun meeting them," she said.

The pop sensation performed six sold-out shows in the first week of March, bringing in Swifties and tourists from across the region.

Economists estimate her concerts would add around S$300 million (US$225 million) to S$400 million to Singapore's GDP in the first quarter.

The terms of her exclusive deal with Singapore had also sparked some unhappiness among neighbouring countries and prompted others to ramp up plans to boost tourism.

Indonesian Tourism Minister Sandiaga Uno recently held talks with Singapore's Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu to explore potential collaboration on hosting entertainment events involving A-list celebrities in his latest visit to the city state.

"Considering the recent Taylor Swift concert in Singapore, the Singaporean economy has seen a significant increase, as the concertgoers brought in five times more spending than the typical tourists," Sandiaga said in a statement last week.

The Indonesian government would set up a US$128 million Indonesia tourism fund aimed at supporting local organisers to stage world-class music shows, he added.

Following criticism that Singapore had offered Swift a sizeable monetary grant that prevented her from performing in other parts of the region, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that the country was not "being unfriendly".

This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

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