Taylor Swift Tickets Rosemont IL Allstate Arena 10/10/2009 October 10, 2009

Taylor Swift
Rosemont IL
Allstate Arena
10/10/2009

If you're thinking this Taylor Swift concert review is going to be about how unprepared she is to be a country superstar, then my guess is that you haven't seen her show yet.

I have to report that her super-successful Fearless tour offers one of the most ambitious and entertaining country concerts I've ever seen. My 12-year-old cousin, who lives in Nebraska, had never been to an arena show before, and I was curious to see if Swift's live performance could live up to her expectations. So off we went to the enormous Qwest Center in Omaha on Sunday night (Aug. 9). I'm not sure what I expected, but it definitely wasn't a seamless, two-hour, multi-act, singing-dancing-hugging extravaganza. All that and Kellie Pickler and Gloriana, too. Whew. Am I getting too old for this?

Actually, one surprising element of Swift's show is that her audience isn't comprised of just screaming teenage girls. I saw several grown women in pairs singing along to every word, along with lots of teen guys (admittedly, most with girlfriends). It's naive to think that only young people would care for Swift's music, even though I was guilty of having that perception myself. It's not like I'm going to tape her poster to my bedroom wall when I get back to Nashville, but I have to say that if she nabs a CMA entertainer of the year nomination this fall, I wouldn't be a bit surprised. Actually, I might be a little proud that our little girl is all grown up.