If it’s up to the fans, one of the first acts of the upcoming mayor of Toronto will be to declare a city holiday in honor of Beyoncé’s latest tour stopping in the city to celebrate. kick off her North American performances.
“I feel like Toronto is going to close this weekend,” said Timothy Achacoso, a Beyoncé fan who was buying a T-shirt featuring the star’s hologram at a mall pop-up store. luxury shopping in the city center, said.
Mr Achacoso, a customer service agent, said: “Olivia Chow should literally turn it into Beyoncé over the weekend. Toronto’s new mayor.
With two shows scheduled in Toronto this weekend, Beyoncé kicks off her North American leg first solo tour in seven years in a city still recovering from the pandemic, shutting down live performances and limiting concert attendance to below capacity.
Her blockbuster performances, part of the Renaissance World Tour, are expected to cause congestion around the concert venue, Rogers Center, with crowds of pedestrians pouring into the streets. in the city center.
Mr. Achacoso is bracing for hours-long waits to get on public transport and return home after the show, estimated based on previous concert-going experiences of superstars like Lady Gaga , who performed at the Rogers Center last summer.
“She’s an icon, she’s a legend, so I feel like I’ll never stop loving Beyoncé,” he said.
This week, thousands of fans flocked to the pop-up store that opened Wednesday on the third floor of Holt Renfrew department store. The store sold T-shirts – including the Toronto-exclusive “Shut This City Down” – hooded sweatshirts and other concert memorabilia. The shiny silver “Renaissance” cowboy hats sold out on the second day of the store.
Maya Coplin, a graphic designer, had come from New York for the show and bought a travel book at the store.
Ms Coplin and her friend who lives in Toronto, Victor Guo, bought their tickets for about 200 Canadian dollars each, or 150 dollars, compared to the nearly $500 price for the nosebleed seats at the Stadium MetLife in New Jersey, she said.
That means a closer look at the choreography Mr. Guo has been practicing at home in preparation for the concert, especially for numbers like “Black Parade,” which Beyoncé has been known to give children. Her daughter, Blue Ivy, performed.
“I especially learned that whole routine,” he said.
Choreography classes to learn the dance steps featured in Beyoncé’s music videos and past tours — or “Beyography” — were in such high demand in Toronto that Nicky Nasrallah taught them to groups of max. 35 people 9 times a week for a year, ending around 2018.
Mr. Nasrallah, a Toronto drag performer who goes by the stage name Selena Vyle, watched Beyoncé’s Mrs. Carter Program three cities travel The making progress toured four times and will be in the VIP section of the Sunday show.
“Her concerts are church, like they are a spiritual awakening,” he said, adding that the tour is an homage to weird dance music would contrast more playfully with the heavier themes of racism and adultery in her previous shows.
“I knew that even before the music started, I would get the energy flowing through my body, because that’s what her concerts are all about,” he said. “They lift you up. It’s like you’re not even standing on your own two feet anymore.
This concert, and one scheduled for September in Vancouver, is a chance for Canadian fans to tap into the global hype that would have them eluded when it comes to another pop star in the running. on tour: Taylor Swift.
Earlier this week, the musician announced 14 new performances for the Eras Tour, with Canadian cities absent from the list. It sparked pleas for Ms Swift on social media by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
“I know places in Canada that would love to have friends,” Mr. Trudeau said, alluding to her song “Cruel Summer” in a parcel on Twitter. “So don’t make it another brutal summer. We hope to see you soon.” (Ms. Swift, so far, has not responded.)
Beyoncé fans like Justin Major, a customer service officer at a software company, will likely line up soon at the Rogers Center, formerly known as the Center skyToronto’s baseball field and a concert venue that, depending on configuration, can accommodate more than 50,000 people.
“All my friends know this is the only album I’ve listened to since last year,” said Mr. Major said, noting that he replayed “Renaissance” for 10 hours straight on a recent return flight from Egypt.
He was prepared to travel as far as Miami to see Beyoncé, but managed to win a $600 Canadian pre-stage ticket, or about $451, for Saturday’s performance.
Major, 25, says: “I knew that if I spent the money, I would have a performance, not just a back up. whole pork.”
