For some Iowa fans of Taylor Swift, the next best thing to seeing her live in concert is seeing her Eras Tour on the big screen.
The filming of “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” premiered Oct. 13 with a surprise showing the night before. In Iowa City on Saturday, several fans were eager to sing along with Swift, who sold out stadiums across the country with her electrifying concert but did not stop in the Hawkeye State as part of her tour.
“Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” made $39 million from 3,855 North American locations on its opening day. The figure includes $2.8 million in Thursday previews, according to Variety.
The film is unlike a typical movie-going experience. District director of Marcus Theatres, Brian Shander, said this type of movie concert experience has been done before but not on this level, encouraging guests to treat the film as a concert rather than a movie.
“We want you to engage with the artists as if they are there, stand up and dance or sing along and cheer when the music is done. Take selfies in the auditorium,” Shander said. “There’s a lot of things that we would normally say you don’t do that in a movie theater, where that’s acceptable in this type of experience.”
While the Eras Tour has gone to 16 cities across the U.S. so far, for those in Iowa, going to see the concert proved to be a challenge, with the closest shows in Kansas City and Chicago. Ticket prices ranged from $49 to $899 on Ticketmaster and resale tickets went for almost double the price on StubHub. Iowa attendees also would have had to consider travel costs.
“The Taylor Swift Eras Tour is a worldwide phenomenon, but it wasn’t easily accessible to the folks who live in some areas, and so this concert film captures the essence of that tour,” Shander said. “For the fan base, it is exciting to see the concert without traveling hundreds of miles or spending thousands of dollars on tickets. It creates an accessible situation where the entire fanbase can enjoy the concert experience.”
Letiola Henriajoez, who has been a fan of Swift since the “Red” album, did not see the concert and still had to travel from Williamsburg to Iowa City to see the film. She equates the movie-going experience to actually being in the stadium singing along.
“It’s been a big dream to see her in concert, and I’m excited to sing along with her,” Henriajoez said.
For other moviegoers, the film was an opportunity to relive the show in all its glory. Sisters Amanda and Andrea Elizalde have been fans of Swift since day one, and even saw her perform in Cedar Rapids in 2008, just ahead of the release of Swift’s second album “Fearless.”
The sisters went to see Swift’s concert in Chicago in June but wanted to see the show from a different perspective.
“I’m excited to see it up close and to be able to relive it and enjoy it like after already seeing it,” Andrea Elizalde said. “ … I don’t remember everything from the first time because I think I kind of blacked out; I just remembered the videos I took but not a ton of other things.”
The movie-going experience embodies what it is like to be at the concert. Marcus Theatres is providing things fans could also see at the concerts, from a photo booth to friendship bracelet kits to collectible souvenir cups and popcorn buckets to exclusive posters.
The theatre transforms into a stadium before fans find seats buzzing with excitement and anticipation, from trading bracelets to snapping pictures dressed up in their favorite eras.
Marcus Theatres has multiple showings over the weekend at the Iowa City and Coralville locations. Find a showtime at marcustheatres.com.
