The most surprising thing about spending a Friday afternoon at Taylor Swift’s The Official Release Party of a Showgirl was how little people looked at their phones. It wasn’t a completely phone-free zone — a few people filmed the screen occasionally or checked their socials — but for the most part those in the sold-out theater were entirely focused on the action. It’s impressive that this was the case, given that the bulk of this Life of a Showgirl celebration consisted of lyric videos, with kaleidoscopic moving images of Swift serving as the backdrop for 11 of the 12 new songs that debuted on Friday, October 3rd.
We entered the theater about 15 minutes before showtime to discover that Maria Menounos’ Noovie had been pre-empted by a custom pre-show featuring the motion graphics which would become very familiar over the course of the afternoon, while tracks from The Life of a Showgirl played.
The AMC Theatres website had been very clear with its warnings that there would be no trailers and our 1:00 p.m. showing would begin promptly at 1:00. Except that wasn’t technically the case, as the lights dimmed at 12:58 to kick things off with a commercial for the Target-exclusive Life of a Showgirl release. (Swift played both herself as well as the director of the commercial, getting off some playfully self-depricating jokes while paying the bills.)
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Then, things began in earnest with Swift talking direct to the camera, thanking us for being there and explaining what exactly we were going to see: The world premiere of the music video for opening track “The Fate of Ophelia,” followed by the aforementioned lyric videos for the other songs.
In that introduction, Swift expressed her hope that we might sing along, which was feasibly something we could have done, given that the lyrics were right there on the screen. Instead, there was almost a worshipful silence from the crowd. That’s not to say the audience was silent: Each song ended to light applause. Additionally, there were a few moments that drew out some big reactions, all deeply embedded in this audience’s keen awareness of what wasn’t being said.
For one thing, the lyrics themselves did not include the more explicit language currently streaming on Spotify and the like: The family-friendly rewrites included “my check’s bigger” instead of “my dick’s bigger” and “opened my thighs” becoming “opened my skies.” Enough people in the audience, though, knew what the original words had been, and there was a fair bit of laughter in response. Oddly, the use of the word “whoring” in “The Life of a Showgirl” endured. Maybe there just wasn’t a clean way to sub that word out.
Also, there were two song intros of note: There was real anticipation in the air for “Actually Romantic” even before Swift began talking about it, and while she didn’t name anyone specifically, she didn’t hesitate to explain the song as “a love letter to someone who hates you.” Everyone chuckled along, the vibe a knowing one.
The real laughs came, though, at the introduction for “Wood,” which Swift would like you to know…. is a song about superstitions! Only that! It is about knocking on wood and black cats and breaking mirrors! That’s it! No other meanings there!
The lyric referencing “New Heights” did get some titters from the crowd as well, one of a few other subtle nods to the future Mr. Taylor Swift. Travis Kelse’s name was not at all mentioned, though, and Swift’s outro for the event credited her inspiration for Life of a Showgirl to the joy she found during the Eras Tour, not her current love story.
Adding some honestly essential life to the proceedings (the human brain really wasn’t meant to watch 11 lyrics videos in a row, at least without some sort of accompanying herbal refreshment) was behind-the-scenes footage from the making of “The Fate of Ophelia.” The music video, premiering the evening of October 5th on YouTube, features Swift dolled up as showgirls from various eras of history, and there’s an impressive amount of choreography involved in certain transitions that the BTS footage lets you properly appreciate. There’s also the reveal that Swift herself baked the loaf of bread seen in one shot — the star beaming with pride about her bread making its screen debut.
Famously talented collaborators like choreographer Mandy Moore and cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto (a four-time Oscar nominee!) get some share of the spotlight in this footage as well, but the focus is largely on watching Swift express her creative vision as both star and director. It’s a little reminiscent of the documentary portions of Beyoncé’s own concert films, except there’s zero conflict on display: Everything is amazing, and if Swift has a note, the note is only meant to make things more amazing. After one take, Swift declares what they just shot to be perfect, but she asks for another take anyway, declaring “Can I try to be a little better? I have more to give.”
The result was an experience tailor-made for the Taylor super-fans and probably of minimal interest to anyone else. Because I didn’t spend $13 to watch 11 lyric videos in a movie theater — I spent $13 for the opportunity to worship at the Church of Taylor, along with her other acolytes. It ended up being an appropriately reverent experience. (Even for a non-believer.)
Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl will be in theaters from October 3rd-5th.