Fifteen-year-old me is screaming.
The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show is back, but is it better than ever? I grew up watching impossibly skinny, beautiful women strut down the catwalk with huge angel wings and little lingerie. So, when I heard that the infamous show was coming back, I was eager to see how the controversial company chose to premiere it. As The Cut’s Hanna Flanagan wrote, “What better way for Victoria’s Secret to silence the haters and prove that executives have acknowledged the criticism and complaints from their customers?"[1]
From a PR standpoint, it was beautiful, the must-see show of the week. Or at least it seemed that way to VS’s target audience. Having the it influencers and the in celebrities all in attendance is not an easy task. Flannagan described the attendees as being “surrounded by my For You page.”[1] Ian Malone of Vogue shares who was in attendance on 34th Street, “Movie stars (Brooke Shields, Priyanka Chopra Jonas) stood alongside models with famous mothers (Lila Moss, Lourdes Leon) in front of the flurry of flashing lights. Renowned comedians (Ziwe Fumudoh, Chloe Fineman) brushed shoulders with social media personalities (Serena Kerrigan, Alix Earle).”[2] I believe the show had the right people there and was promoted very well. Everyone knew that VS was coming back.
The show brought the fan favorites/veteran angels to walk the pink carpet, the likes of Taylor Hill and Adriana Lima. However, many are comparing the stage of the performance to Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty 2019 show.
The presentation began with a simple spotlight on Naomi Campbell, who introduced Gigi Hadid (another veteran VS angel), who introduced a short, 12-minute preview of The Tour ‘23, the film. Flannagan and other audience members were confused; this was NYFW, not the Cannes Film Festival. They were not there to see a movie…
I believe the VS PR team made a good call showing the film, given that that is what the presentation was promoting. What I would have done if I were on their PR team was to have the NYFW show be the show they are filming. Then, release that to Prime Video later this month. Or better yet, live stream it (and have virtual tickets) and then release it to Prime Video.
I am left wondering when did they film this show? Was it live? Was there an audience? Multiple takes? Where is the magic of a livestream show of yore?
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