The Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film opened Friday, and San Francisco Taylor Swift fans showed they were evermore than willing to live up to their reputation as highly accessorized, friendship bracelet-wearing devotees.
When the great American dynasty of blockbuster pop superstar Taylor Swift came to the Bay Area with the Eras Tour in July, the cheapest seats were about $1,000 each, and some seats were being resold for more than $40,000. That left many a Swiftie priced out. But Swift’s legions of lovers rejoiced at the news that a Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film would capture that experience in movie theaters, with a much more reasonable admission price.
Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour had its Friday night premiere at the SF Alamo Drafthouse, and dressed up fans were ready for it. SFist was onhand to get these images of the Taylor Swift apparel revue at the sold-out screening with not a blank space in the house.
There was no need to calm down, according to Alamo Drafthouse’s Maddy Lofberg, who addressed the crowd before the movie’s first screening there Friday night. “In the words of Miss Taylor Alison Swift herself, dancing and singing are encouraged,” Lofberg said. “Stand up, shake it off. However, do not stand on the chairs.”
“Please do not get up on the stage,” she added. “This area is reserved for Taylor herself.”
The Chronicle notes that technically, Thursday night had the SF premiere, though that was only at AMC theaters. And yes, seeing Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour at an AMC theater does give you the option of that commemorative Taylor Swift popcorn bucket.
But Friday’s early evening show at the Alamo Drafthouse had more little girl energy.
And some of these girls were enchanted to meet you!
Deadline reports this concert film pulled in $37.8 million on Friday alone, and projects an opening weekend haul between $90 million and $109 million.
This means Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour made more domestic box office money in one day than her other most recent film Cats made in its entire U.S. theatrical release. The mega-flop Cats made only $27 million in its brief domestic run.
Here we have matching 1989 hats. “We were born in 1989,” ball cap-wearer Amber Artrip told SFist. “There’s something about knowing that she’s our age.”
The other 1989 ball cap-wearer Lydia Martino said, “I resonate so much with all of Taylor’s lyrics, because I feel like in every era of my life I’ve been going through almost the same thing as her, at a very different scale."
Many fans were just thrilled with the opportunity to see Taylor Swift without shelling out the multiple thousands of dollars that an Eras Tour seat required. “I’m a teacher, so that didn’t happen for me,” one fan named Kaili told us. “But it did tonight.”
The Alamo Drafthouse had (and still has) a special Taylor Swift accessory section, naturally with friendship bracelets, and the heart-shaped sunglasses seen in her 2012 video for the track “22.” And I want you to know those are mirrorball drinking cups in the background.
Sure, you can see Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour at an AMC theater if you want that commemorative Taylor Swift popcorn bucket. But if you’d prefer to see it at an indie theater that’s much cooler than that, it’s also playing at the Alamo Drafthouse, the Balboa Theater, and the Marina Theatre.
But caution! Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour “contains several sequences with imagery & sustained flashing lights” that may affect those with photosensitivities.
Related: Taylor Swift to Be Named Honorary Mayor of Santa Clara, City to Be Renamed ‘Swiftie Clara’
Images: Joe Kukura, SFist
