Jolin Tsai’s giant snake stage sends the Internet into a hiss-terical frenzy

If 2026 needed an opening act, Jolin Tsai may have just delivered it – from the mouth of a giant snake, no less.

Footage from the Taipei leg of her Pleasure world tour has been ricocheting across social media since the new year, capturing the moment the 45-year-old Taiwanese pop princess appeared poised atop a colossal serpent-shaped stage prop, commanding the arena as tens of thousands of fans erupted below. Within hours, clips of the performance had triggered a wave of online reactions, leaving attendees awed, amused, and mildly terrified.

The performances ran from December 30 to January 1 at the Taipei Dome stadium, drawing crowds of roughly 40,000 each night. Across three sold-out shows, more than 120,000 fans witnessed the launch of what is shaping up to be one of the most visually ambitious Asian pop tours in recent memory.

At the heart of the spectacle was a snake installation stretching approximately 30 metres in length. Operated live by multiple stage crew members, the moving structure slithered around the performance platform as the diva sang from above, transforming the arena into something closer to a surreal theatre set than a conventional concert stage.

According to KbizoOm, the Pleasure tour carries an estimated production budget of NT$900 million (around US$24 million), placing it among the most expensive concert projects ever mounted by a Mandarin pop artist. The snake was only one piece of the puzzle. Throughout the show, Jolin moved between elaborate set pieces inspired by animals and metamorphosis such as bulls, pigs, butterflies, reinforcing the tour’s dreamlike, symbolic aesthetic.

It was also reported that, Jolin thanked her creative and technical teams in post-show messages for bringing her ideas to life, acknowledging the sheer scale of coordination required to pull off such a production safely and seamlessly.