A new era is upon us! In case you somehow missed it, last week Taylor Swift announced her forthcoming 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl. Along with her announcement (on boyfriend Travis Kelce’s podcast, no less), Swift unveiled a series of alternate album covers. Among them was a photo of the singer, dressed in a rhinestone-encrusted showgirl costume (headwear and all), a finger raised to her signature red lips.
Swift wore a bejeweled bra and thong with matching hip swags, a headpiece, and feathered armbands made of French wirework and blush illusion lining. She chose a look loaded with history, originally designed by Bob Mackie for the finale of Don Arden’s Jubilee!
Today, Swift released another album cover variant (dubbed the “Baby, That’s Show Business” edition). Dressed in the full Jubilee! showgirl getup, complete with vibrant yellow headdresses and lush ostrich feathers hanging from her glittering arm cuffs, Swift is surrounded by fellow matching showgirls. She swapped the embellished hip swags and body chain for a choker necklace complete with three large rhinestone pendants.
Jubilee! ran for a record-breaking 35 years—from July 1981 until its closure in February 2016—the longest-running Las Vegas production at the time. Mackie wrote on Instagram that the show’s 1,000-plus costumes were inspired by the Ziegfeld Follies, the series of grand Broadway revues that ran intermittently from 1907 until 1957.
“The enduring allure of showgirls and the glamour they represent continues to fascinate us all,” Mackie tells Vogue. “The spectacle of Jubilee! stands as a testament to the timeless appeal of opulence in performance.”
With a deep cut already under her (rhinestoned) belt, Taylor Swift once again reminds us that she’s never one to do anything halfheartedly.
