Taylor Swift’s concerts draw crowds of more than 50,000 people around the world.

Less than 450 Swifties will get a chance to see a laser light show built around the singer’s hits for Rock the Dome Weekend at Youngstown State University’s Ward Beecher Planetarium.

This will be the first time since 2019 that the planetarium has taken a break from its predominantly educational programming to host a weekend of laser light shows built around the music of various artists.

“We had one scheduled for 2020 and the pandemic wiped it out,” planetarium engineer Curt Spivey said. “We were going to do one in 2021 and a relapse of the pandemic wiped it out. We were all set to do it again in 2023 and the fire (at the planetarium) wiped it out. So it’s been a long time since we’ve been able to do one of these.”

The event was designed to showcase the planetarium, a resource available to YSU students that also provides programming that is available to the general public.

“The idea is to get people to come to the planetarium to realize what a resource it is,” Spivey said. “We are free and open to the public. This is a way to get people who wouldn’t normally come to the planetarium to come, and they’ll see what a great time it is, and we’ll get them to come back for our more standard programs as well.”

The laser light shows and the equipment to operate them comes from Laser Fantasy International, but the planetarium also will use its existing lighting system, which was improved with the post-fire renovations, to complement the production.

“The dome is brand new and is going to look fantastic with the lasers on it,” Spivey said.

In the past, laser shows created around classic rock acts have been the biggest draw, and this year’s lineup includes many returning favorites, including shows programmed to The Beatles, Queen, Rush and Led Zeppelin.

“You can’t do laser shows without doing Pink Floyd,” Spivey said, and that band’s show will be the finale on both Friday and Saturday nights.

“However, we are trying to get a younger audience in there, so we also picked the Foo Fighters for the local connection (the band is led by Warren native Dave Grohl). We thought that would be a good one.”

Based on the reaction on social media, Spivey and his staff are expecting Taylor Swift to be the biggest draw. The laser light spectacle featuring such Swift songs as “22,” “Love Story,” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” and “Shake It Off” is scheduled at 6 p.m. Friday and 2 and 6 p.m. Saturday.

The planetarium drew larger than usual crowds for its Halloween Lights show last October, and organizers are drawing on that experience for this year’s Rock the Dome.

Planetarium employees will distribute tokens on a first-come, first-served basis. Only one token will be given to each person (one person can’t ask for four for a group of friends arriving later). Only 144 seats are available for each show, five fewer than the planetarium seated before the post-fire renovations. And because of the full schedule both Friday and Saturday, additional shows cannot be added to accommodate overflow crowds.

“We can start issuing tokens about two hours ahead of the scheduled show,” Spivey said. “Plan on getting here early, and please be patient with us. We’re doing the best that we can. We’re going to have lots of folks to help us out, but we’re doing the best we can with our 144 seats.”

Admission is free, but a donation of at least $1 is requested to offset the cost of renting the laser system the shows require. Spivey said Laser Fantasy International also creates educational programs that the Ward Beecher Planetarium would be able to program if it has a laser light system of its own.

“If a donor wants to give a five-figure donation to the planetarium, one thing they can do for us is actually purchase us a permanently installed laser system,” he said. “This does cost a pretty penny to rent. We just don’t have the capital to permanently install one at the moment, but it is something we’d like to do down the road.”

If you go …

WHAT: Rock the Dome Weekend

WHEN: 5 to 11 p.m. Friday and 2 to 11 p.m. Saturday

WHERE: Ward Beecher Planetarium, Youngstown State University

HOW MUCH: Admission is free, but a donation of at least $1 per person is requested to offset the cost of the laser system rental. For more information, go to wbplanetarium.org/rockthedome

FRIDAY SCHEDULE

5 p.m. — Foo Fighters

6 p.m. — Taylor Swift

7 p.m. — The Beatles

8 p.m. — Led Zeppelin

9 p.m. — Rush

10 p.m. — Pink Floyd

SATURDAY SCHEDULE

2 p.m. — Taylor Swift

3 p.m. — The Beatles

4 p.m. — Foo Fighters

5 p.m. — Queen

6 p.m. — Taylor Swift

7 p.m. — The Beatles

8 p.m. — Led Zeppelin

9 p.m. — Queen

10 p.m. — Pink Floyd