Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has been the place to see and be seen this year, with thousands of fans waiting for hours to try to get tickets, and celebrities like Flavor Flav living their best life at the concert. Now the artist has made it much easier to witness the pop culture phenomenon, regardless of whether or not you were able to catch it live. I’m thrilled at the opportunity to see Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour in theaters, but I do have some questions about the concert film and how it will differ from the in-person experience.
While Swifties may already be familiar with the rules of Eras Tour etiquette, many are wondering how moviegoers will be expected to act at the theater come October 13, or which surprise songs were chosen for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour. More casual fans of Taylor Swift may be wondering what to wear, or what’s the deal with the friendship bracelets? Below are some of the big questions I have about the upcoming theatrical experience.
What Should I Wear To The Eras Tour Movie?
Taylor Swift has been rocking some truly stunning Eras Tour outfits, and many Swifties have used those looks as inspiration so that when they walk in the room, they make the whole place shimmer. I’m hoping that audiences will carry that energy into the theaters come October.
Just like everybody went full Barbiecore to see Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in Barbie, I want to see people having fun with their outfits, and if you want to shop for looks based on your favorite Taylor Swift era, we can certainly help with that. From cardigans to cowboy boots, sparkly dresses or just a concert tee with jeans, there should be plenty of wardrobe options that honor Taylor Swift and are still comfortable enough to enjoy the two-plus-hour event.
What Surprise Songs Will Taylor Swift Play In The Movie?
The Eras Tour playlist is widely available for Swifties to see which of their favorite hits from each era made the cut. However, the crowd is always treated to a mini-acoustic set, when she sings two surprise songs that vary with each of her tour dates. The movie footage comes from her first three Los Angeles concerts — August 3-5 — according to Billboard.
Since we at CinemaBlend have been keeping track of all the surprise songs on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, we can deduce that the movie’s surprise songs will likely be two of these six songs: “I Can See You,” “Maroon,” “Our Song,” “You Are in Love,” “Death by a Thousand Cuts” and “You’re on Your Own, Kid."
Since the preview named her self-titled album as being among those featured in the movie — and none of the other songs on Taylor Swift appear elsewhere on the setlist — it seems like “Our Song” is a good bet to make the cut.
Will Some Songs On The Eras Tour Set List Be Left Out Of The Movie?
If you’ve caught the Eras Tour live, you’re aware that her set exceeds the three-hour mark, yet the concert film is being billed as just 2 hours and 45 minutes long. What gives? I can’t imagine Swifties would take too kindly to finding out that any of the songs have been edited out of the film version. Sure, there are segments in between the songs where Taylor Swift talks to the crowd, but since we see at least one of those moments in the trailer, that’s not likely where the cuts came from.
Hopefully being able to edit out the time taken for Taylor Swift’s costume changes and set changes for her different eras is the full explanation for the difference in length, but with no official word out of Swift’s camp, we may just have to wait until October 13 to find out for sure.
Will Swifties Be Trading Friendship Bracelets At The Movie Theater?
It’s become a Swiftie tradition to exchange friendship bracelets with fellow fans during Eras Tour concerts, and even celebrities have joined in, with Jennifer Garner showing off an on-point bracelet game (pictured above) and Simu Liu boasting his own impressive haul. Will that continue for the theatrical version of the show? According to Taylor Swift it will! In her initial concert announcement on Instagram, she wrote, “Eras attire, friendship bracelets, singing and dancing encouraged,” and asked fans, “What’s your friendship bracelet going to say?”
I don’t actually know what mine are going to say, and I don’t know how many would be appropriate to make. Are people going to be walking around the theater beforehand to do their exchanges? During the show? And that leads to one final question, and it’s a pretty big one:
Will People Be Standing, Singing And Dancing During The Eras Tour Movie?
Taylor Swift concerts are loud, interactive affairs, with dancing, shouting, “1, 2, 3 let’s go bitch” and lots of screaming in general. Movie theaters are technically meant to be, well, the opposite of that. As mentioned above, the artist herself is encouraging singing and dancing during Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, and I’m really curious as to how that’s going to go over with everyone else in the theater, not to mention those trying to watch other movies.
On one hand, I really have no interest in sitting silently for 2.5 hours and listening to Taylor Swift. I can do that in my car (and let’s be honest, even then I’m still singing and dancing like Taylor at the VMAs). This seems like more of a concert setting, because enjoying it with the group is part of the appeal. However, I also understand the concerns of some discussing this very question on Reddit. Lots of people say they’re prepared to be all, “You need to calm down. You’re being too loud,” because they actually want to hear Taylor Swift sing, and you can’t really fault them for that.
At least one theater chain in Texas has said they're anticipating fans getting "a little rowdy," within reason, of course. Hopefully fans will be able to have a blast while still keeping others around them in mind. I'd think singing is fine, but screaming not as much. Dancing in your chair? Great. Running around the theater? No. Also, there will be fans who aren’t able to (or simply don’t want to) stand up for that long, so hopefully people will be courteous, though I imagine this aspect of the experience will vary theater-to-theater.
There’s no question how huge this tour is for Taylor Swift and her fans, but taking such an epic pop culture moment and bringing it to a smaller venue does come with a little uncertainty. While I may not have all of the answers, I know for sure that this is an experience I need to witness first-hand. Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour tickets are available at AMC, Cinemark, Regal and other theaters, and while we wait for October 13, take a peek at everything else Swifties have to be excited about. And in the words of T-Swift in regards to her tour: See you there.
