A Taylor Swift fanatic has transformed her New Orleans home into a tourist attraction for Swifties and Halloween fanatics alike after decorating her front yard with a host of hilariously accurate Eras Tour-themed skeletons.
Longtime NOLA resident Louellen Berger has become famous for her intricate Halloween displays over the years, having begun decorating the front lawn of her 1950s property for about 20 years ago.
So famous have her decorations become that the home has even been given its own name, “Skeleton House NOLA,” as well as its own dedicated Instagram account.
But while Berger has amassed plenty of attention with her clever ideas, her latest project has earned the kind of viral superstardom that few can ever dream of—with videos taken outside the property showing hoards of eager Swifties lining up in hopes of catching a glimpse at the “Terror Swift: The scERAS Tour” display.
Designed in honor of Swift bringing her iconic Eras Tour to New Orleans on Oct. 25 for three dates, the display has proven to be almost as popular as the concerts themselves.
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Berger started off her little hobby on the small side with just a few skeletons jauntily arranged.
According to a People interview, she had “one doing a backbend, another with a hula hoop, and a third in a cartwheel.”
“Eventually, our local newspaper named the skeleton in the tree ‘Lazy Bones,’ which inspired me to give the rest of the skeletons punny names that matched their poses,” she adds.
Over time, Berger’s bone collection has grown so large that she’s taken to storing it (and not her car) in her garage.
Now, every year for two special days, she and husband Darryl decide on a theme for the yard and set up the two dozen bone men to the delight of her Instagram followers and neighbors.
She even takes suggestions for pose ideas (“Saturday Night Femur” was a big hit a few years ago).
For 2024, however, the Swift-inspired design came to Berger from her 11 grandchildren, who are aged between 3 and 12.
And the timing couldn’t have been more perfect since the Eras Tour just made a stop in the city over the weekend.
Berger, who has a background in fashion, created the skeleton costumes herself, sewing the looks using castoff clothing from family members.
One costume is dedicated to Swift’s boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and another is based on Swift’s “Red” album.
Much like the pop star’s Eras Tour costumes, each skeleton has been designed to correspond with one of Swift’s different album “eras,” from “Folklore” to “Midnights.”
Berger has always been a fan of Halloween, from childhood to grandmother-hood.
Her son, Ryan, notes that she always tries to come up with a look that taps into today’s zeitgeist.
“Hardly anything is as current and fun as Taylor Swift descending on New Orleans the weekend before Halloween, so suffice it to say, she went all out with the skeleton display!” he told People.
Swift achieved yet another sellout success during her stop in NOLA, performing on three nights to a packed crowd at the Caesars Superdome.
The singer will now make her way to Indianapolis before moving on to Toronto and Vancouver, where she will wrap up her tour Dec. 8.