By John Corrado
For Taylor Swift fans, the release of a new album means listening to the whole thing when it drops at midnight and obsessing over the lyrics (at least that’s what I always do). Now, for the first time ever, Taylor has gifted us a theatrical event to go along with her latest album, The Life of a Showgirl.
Ever the genius marketer (and skilled capitalist), Swift’s The Official Release Party of a Showgirl is a self-distributed, one-weekend-only theatrical event that brings together the premiere of her self-directed music video for lead single “The Fate of Ophelia,” exclusive behind the scenes footage from the shoot, and lyric videos for all twelve songs on her 12th album.
We open with the music video. It’s an elaborate production that begins with a visual nod to the Ophelia painting that inspired the album’s cover art, and draws from any number of “showgirl” influences; from cabaret clubs, to Busby Berkley musicals, and Vegas showgirls. The aesthetics suggest Swift was likely a fan of Gia Coppola’s The Last Showgirl. The song itself is a banger.
There is behind the scenes footage threaded throughout the 89 minute running time. We see her directing, laying out her clear vision for the sets and camera moves, as she works her way through a series of impressive practical backdrops in a dazzling array of costumes. It’s a joy to watch her working with the team of dancers from the Eras Tour and choreographer Mandy Moore, as well as cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto.
What’s evident is how much Swift loves every aspect of the directing process, right down to the endearing way she gets excited about putting a loaf of bread that she baked herself in the video. We see her fostering a spirit of creativity and collaboration on-set. It’s a boost of confidence for her in-development feature directorial debut, proving that she’s got the vision and drive to direct an actual movie next.
The other big draw of this event is that it lets us experience the whole album in a theatre. We get the lyric videos for all twelve tracks, each one preceded by an introduction from Taylor explaining a bit of the meaning behind the songs. As such, it’s hard to review the experience without writing about the album itself. I’d already listened to it twice all the way through the night before seeing it, so this was my third full listen. I’m a fan.
The album finds Swift working with Swedish producers Max Martin and Shellback again, their glistening productions over her lyrics providing a collection of shimmering, well-written pop songs. This is evident right from the Shakespearean album opener that reclaims Ophelia’s fate, and the bright, dance-pop second track “Opalite,” made all the better by Swift’s explanation of using the idea of man-made opals as a metaphor for making your own happiness. On the third track, “Elizabeth Taylor,” she directly name-checks Old Hollywood glamour.
There’s also the double entendre-laden “Wood,” in which a Jackson 5-esque, Motown-inspired intro gives way to Taylor’s cheekiest song, at least lyrically. It’s worth it to hear Taylor saying with a straight face that it’s just about superstitions, and not, well, you know, a different kind of “wood” or “magic wand.” The one caveat with this theatrical presentation is that we are given the “clean” versions of these songs, so “Wood” is now much sweeter; instead of “you were the key that opened my thighs,” she sings “skies.” Much tamer, but still playful.
Taylor also explores ruthless ambition on songs like “Father Figure,” a George Michael-inspired but Godfather-coded track about taking back power, loyalty, and how you survive in this world. It’s one of the album’s fiercest tracks (even if the song’s most jaw-dropping lyric “my dick’s bigger” is now “my check’s bigger” in this clean version).
Then there’s the ruthless but still sparkly-sounding diss track “Actually Romantic,” exploring how obsessively hating on someone is actually, you know, kind of romantic. There’s been some pearl-clutching online about the potential pettiness of the track, and its insane opening line “I heard you call me boring Barbie when the coke’s got you brave.” But I find it pretty funny (and I don’t dislike Charli XCX, who the slight is seemingly aimed at).
Other songs are more wistful. Like “Ruin the Friendship,” a classically Swiftian pop ballad about taking a chance on expressing your feelings for someone even if it, well, ruins the friendship, that narratively takes her back to high school. The other thing that happened during the Eras Tour (and the creation of this album) was that Travis Kelce entered Taylor’s life, the all-American football star who swept her off her feet. I would even venture to say that this is maybe her most openly romantic album in places, suggesting a maturing worldview when it comes to relationships and marriage.
On her 2022 album Midnights (a personal favourite of mine), Taylor sang that she just wanted to stay in that “Lavender Haze” (“the 1950s shit they want from me” is how she alluded to questions about marriage). Here, on the lovely, bittersweet Track 5 “Eldest Daughter,” she admits “when I said I don’t believe in marriage, that was a lie.” This is Taylor admitting that she just needed to find the right person.
“Wi$h Li$t” is her clearest indication yet that, after experiencing fame and, well, the life of a showgirl, maybe it is the white picket fence suburban fantasy of marriage and kids (i.e., “the 1950s shit”) that she actually wants. Or, more vulnerably, she is finally able to admit to herself that she wants it, letting go of the fear of having her heart broken again.
On “Wi$h Li$t,” Swift almost sarcastically runs down a checklist of what most people want in the industry. “They want that critical smash Palme d’Or, and an Oscar on the bathroom floor,” she cleverly rhymes. But “I just want you,” she croons to her new man, “have a couple kids, got the whole block looking like you.” It’s almost like she was just waiting for the right man to come into her life.
Not to present this as Taylor taking a stand in the culture wars, but she does sort of go there on tracks like the Blake Lively-coded “CANCELLED!”, which wades into themes of cancel culture and having your career ruined by angry people on the internet. “Good thing I like my friends cancelled, I like ‘em cloaked in Gucci and in scandal,” she sings, another pretty savage lyric on the album’s most Reputation-influenced track.
The final song, “The Life of a Showgirl (feat. Sabrina Carpenter),” is presented from the perspective of a young fan meeting a pop star at the stage door after a concert. It’s a clever bit of storytelling enhanced by the presence of Carpenter. If critics accuse Swift of cutting down other female popstars, she is also willing to build up a protege. It’s not a passing of the torch to Carpenter, but a welcome for her to share the same stage. Swift has nothing but effusive praise for her tour-opener in her intro to the song, with Carpenter’s own bitingly clever, cutely suggestive lyrics making her a natural friend.
As a “for the fans” experience, The Official Release Party of a Showgirl is pretty irresistible. It’s a chance to hear directly from our pop icon, get some insight into her latest tracks, and bask in the production design of her new music video. We even get to see “The Fate of Ophelia” twice at both the beginning and end. It’s a nice touch, with the behind-the-scenes footage giving us an even deeper appreciation of the video when we are treated to seeing it a second time on the big screen. And getting to hear this fabulous album blasting through movie theatre speakers is a pretty sweet bonus.
The Joy of Movies 