The Yellow Jacket Activity Board rented out a theatre for students to watch Taylor Swift’s newest concert film, “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” Oct. 20, leading some with mixed feelings regarding the experience of the film compared to the live performance.
The nearly three-hour film is a virtual way to experience Swift’s latest tour that has taken over the world.
The movie runs through all of Swift’s different albums, or as Swiftie’s call them, “eras.”
Unlike other movies, people in the audience were encouraged to dress up as if they were attending the real concert, including singing and dancing in the theater so long as they are stay mindful of other patrons.
Katie Colabianchi, a senior English and education student, said she thinks it was a good substitution for seeing the show live, especially with sky-high prices of the live concert.
Tickets for the live concert were extremely difficult to obtain with Ticketmaster’s verified fan system, and the tickets sold through resellers for the United States leg were upwards of $1000 for nose-bleed seats. In comparison, the tickets for the movie are priced at around $20.
Colabianchi also said that she enjoyed seeing the movie, and that it felt very authentic and personal to her.
One student, Brooke Walburn, a senior creative writing student, saw the live performance and the film and said that seeing the performance live was “unforgettable” because it was her first-ever concert.
“The crowd’s energy was also really fun to be a part of,” Walburn said.
While the film encourages participants to mimic the high energy through singing and dancing in the theater, fans took to social media to debate the level of involvement that was appropriate.
Colabianchi said that when she only watched the film from her seat, some people got up to dance and sing, which, she said was still a fun part of the experience.
During the YJAB student viewing of the film, Walburn said the attendees had fun doing some of the concert chants during the film; however, she said that she believes it is important to remember that other people are in the building.
“I don’t mind the singing and stuff,” Walburn said. “But I think it’s important to remember that there are other movies being screened in the theaters next to the ones with the ‘Eras Tour’ playing, and it might be rude to be screaming.”
Taylor Perdue, a junior exercise science student, said that they should have multiple showings, some for people who want to sing and dance, and others for those who want to sit and watch.
Perdue, like Walburn, has seen the show live. He has not seen it in theaters yet but does plan on seeing it to compare the experience with that of the live concert.
“I’m excited for the ‘Eras Tour’ movie,” Perdue said, “I like that she made the tour into a movie.”
There are some notable differences between the movie and the live show. For instance, some songs were cut from the set list so the movie would not be too long. But some students, such as Colabianchi, said the almost three-hour long film was overkill.
“If I were at the concert, it would seem like it would go by much quicker,” Colabianchi said. “But because you’re sitting down, you’re not fully engaged with it as an audience member, so it seemed a little long.”
Some students who were able to see both the live show and movie also noticed some differences between them. Walburn said that watching the movie was “almost like a different experience,” and said she noticed things that she would not have been able to see from her seat.
“I had no idea how much of a story the dancers were telling until I got to see it close up,” Walburn said.
Compared to Swift’s previous film, the “1989 World Tour,” the new film offers only the edited performances instead of the more documentary style features such behind-the-scenes footage and clips of her and her friends talking about everything that went into the show.
“I wish the movie was more of a documentary. I would have liked to see the behind-the-scenes,” Perdue said.
“Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” is available to watch in theaters now.
