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

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

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.

Swift’s decision to skip the Philippines, which Coronel described as “Taylor Swift country” with a huge fanbase, 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