Man rushes stage at Taylor Swift SD show

The “Bad Blood” Taylor Swift sang about during her Saturday night concert at Petco Park got a little too real after a man somehow sneaked on stage, where he then brawled with four security guards before being subdued.

The incident occurred two-thirds of the way through the sold-out San Diego show as Swift was performing “Style,” the 12th selection in her 18-song concert. The 13th, incidentally, was “Bad Blood.”

The man, identified by police as Christian Ewing, 26, was able to get into the sold-out show, even though he did not have a ticket, San Diego police Sgt. Lisa McKean said. It is unclear how he made it onto the field at Petco, let alone onto the stage.

Ewing was first detected on the field, before he got on stage. After noticing he wasn’t wearing a wristband, some of Swift’s tour security guards confronted Ewing and detained him until they could turn him over to stadium security. As stadium security escorted Ewing away, the guard stumbled or lost control, Sgt. McKean said, and Ewing was able to escape his grip.

Ewing then managed to jump on stage during Swift’s performance. Four security guards tackled the 5-foot-9-inch, 185-pound man and took him into custody. One guard broke a rib during the scuffle, according to Sgt. McKean.

If Swift was aware of the incident, which took place to the left behind her, she showed no sign of it. Her performance of “Style” continued uninterrupted, as she and some of her dozen male dancers moved from the stage to the catwalk that extended 150 feet into into the audience. Had the brawl taken occurred during her next song, “Bad Blood,” it might have seemed like part of the choreography.

Ewing was booked into jail on numerous charges, including felony battery causing serious bodily injury, felony battery against a police officer, felony obstructing or resisting an executive officer, misdemeanor battery, misdemeanor obstructing a public officer and two infractions — being a spectator in a prohibited area and entering a venue without a ticket.

He is being held in downtown San Diego jail on $60,000 bail and is expected to be arraigned Wednesday if he does not post bond.

The incident took place near the left side of the stage, where Swift’s drummer and bassist were performing on a darkened part of the stage. Perched on a nearby rooftop patio, U-T photographer K.C. Alfred witnessed the scuffle between Ewing and the security guards. It was not readily visible from this reviewer’s field level seat near the stage’s sprawling catwalk.

“It looked like (Ewing) came from stage left and ran past Swift as she was coming up from the hole in the center of the stage at the start of the song. The struggle was near her drummer and bass player to her left,” Alfred said.

“He mistimed it. Ewing ran on stage just before she came up on stage. If it was 15 seconds later, he would have been right in her face.”