TAYLOR SWIFT 'THE LIFE OF A SHOWGIRL' REVIEW

☆☆☆☆☆

Image: Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott.

On The Life of a Showgirl, Taylor Swift does what she’s always done best: pulls back the curtain on the performance of identity, love and fame. Across twelve tracks, Swift leans into theatrical imagery and old-Hollywood archetypes, not to escape herself, but to sharpen the contrast between the woman and the spectacle. The album threads deeply personal themes through polished pop production, showing a sharpened self-awareness that bridges emotionally vulnerable songwriting with her most biting wit. The Life of a Showgirl is not a reinvention, but a reclamation.

Opening with The Fate of Ophelia, Swift immediately revisits familiar ground; the Shakespearean references that anchored Love Story, again changing fateful outcomes. “Late one night, you dug me out of my grave and saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia,” she sings, defying the doomed path laid out for Shakespeare’s literary heroine and, implicitly, for herself. This kind of narrative reclamation is a recurring theme across the album. The lyric stands in sharp contrast to “Two graves, one gun. I’ll find someone,” from So Long, London (from The Tortured Poets Department), suggesting a progression from heartbreak to unconditional love.

That evolution continues in Elizabeth Taylor, where Swift draws a deliberate parallel between herself and the screen legend, a woman whose glamour and public persona often overshadowed her private pain. The track harks back to the synth-heavy confidence of reputation, but with a quieter kind of defiance. This is a love song dressed in cinematic detail, and underneath the satin lies fear: of losing love, of being misunderstood, of becoming more myth than person.

The duality of performance and authenticity carries through to Eldest Daughter, a classic ‘track five’ in Swiftie folklore that captures the weight of expectations. Built around soft piano and minimal production, it considers how much of ourselves we perform just to be seen as capable. The song becomes even more poignant when placed alongside Honey, which deals in the emotional labour of rewriting language to heal old wounds and let love in to our lives. In both tracks, Swift confronts the effort it takes to turn past pain into present tenderness; whether in family roles, romantic relationships, or public perception.

In Opalite, she shifts tones entirely, diving into glossy, retro-pop textures that recall ABBA and The Beach Boys. Here, she frames happiness not as a discovery, but a decision. “Opalite” being a man-made gem becomes a metaphor for self-made joy. There’s a playful charm in lines like “I had a bad habit of missing lovers past. My brother used to call it ‘eating out of the trash,’” but the message is clear: we choose what to carry forward, and what to let go.

Sonically, The Life of a Showgirl marks a reinvigoration of Swift’s pop framework, largely thanks to her reunion with Swedish hitmakers Max Martin and Shellback. Swift, Martin, and Shellback co‑produce the entire album, with no additional producers - a first for Swift. The result is a polished, punchy sound: bold synth work, sparkling hooks, and dramatic melodies that lean toward glossy pop while nudging at theatricality. Some of the most striking moments come in CANCELLED! and Actually Romantic which are fuelled by electrifying guitar work. The record is laced with retro shimmer, harnessing 60’s and 70’s pop-inspired melodies and harmonies, and is an exciting new sonic terrain for Swift’s prowess to run rampant in. 

The album’s central tension between performance and sincerity, myth and memory, comes to a head in CANCELLED!. Sonically cut from the same cloth as reputation, the track is Swift at her most fearless, using her own experience with public scandal to comfort a friend caught in similar crossfire. But unlike the combative tone of her past diss tracks, CANCELLED! is more about resilience than revenge. “They stood by me before my exoneration,” she sings, referencing her real-world journey from public backlash to vindication. She isn’t interested in vindictiveness, but in solidarity: “Good thing I like my friends cancelled, I like ’em cloaked in Gucci and in scandal.” The song serves as both a rallying cry and a survival guide, spotlighting the strength of community amid scrutiny. It also echoes the theme of Father Figure, where Swift positions herself as a protective force for younger artists navigating the same treacherous industry she’s weathered.

Father Figure, which samples George Michael’s track of the same name, expands Swift’s vision beyond personal storytelling. It’s both a homage and a declaration of power. “I can make deals with the devil because my dick's bigger,” she sings, not for shock value, but to assert dominance in a space historically hostile to women in control. Like CANCELLED!, it’s about using hard-won experience to open doors and shield others from the worst parts of fame, whilst also taking aim at those who betray her. These two tracks paired give the album its backbone of mentorship and moral clarity.

On what could become the album’s most divisive track, Actually Romantic seems to wade directly into long-standing rumours of a feud. But it does so with a knowing smirk. Built on Swift’s signature biting lyricism, the song adopts a tongue-in-cheek tone, reimagining obsession as a form of flattery. Every jab aimed her way becomes, in her telling, an accidental love letter. “No one has ever loved me like you do,” she sings, turning criticism into intimacy. Swift has always mastered the art of disarming her detractors with poise, and here she reframes the dynamic as a one-sided affair; a relationship she quietly walked away from long ago.

Romantic what-ifs and past regrets surface in Ruin the Friendship, a bittersweet ballad tracing a platonic relationship that almost turned romantic, until it was too late. The repeated line “Should’ve kissed you anyway” gains weight when she reveals she whispered it at his grave. The emotional weight here mirrors Wi$h Li$t, where Swift looks forward instead of back. Both tracks are quiet meditations on longing, but where Ruin the Friendship mourns a missed moment, Wi$h Li$t dreams of moments yet to come; building a home and finding peace in simplicity.

Wood steers the album into more carnal territory. It’s one of Swift’s most overtly sensual songs, using superstition as metaphor for lust and emotional risk. Its slow burn intensity pairs well with Honey, which arrives shortly after as a form of emotional resolution. The former deals in heat, while the latter offers something softer, gentler; a kind of post-storm sweetness. Love, in these two songs, is both fire and calm.

The album closes with its title track, The Life of a Showgirl, featuring Sabrina Carpenter. In this theatrical duet, Swift plays the curious newcomer while Carpenter takes on the role of Kitty, the seasoned performer who knows what the spotlight costs. It’s a clever inversion - Swift playing the ingénue when she is anything but - offering a final wink before the curtain drops. The inclusion of Swift’s closing speech from the final Eras Tour show adds a rare moment that also highlights her adoring fanbase. It's a grounding moment, reminding us that the character may be a showgirl, but the story belongs entirely to her.

Across the album, Swifts vocals are playful, poised and powerful. She leans in to the bright and shaded caverns of her range, offering a level of intimacy when using her lower tones that offer emotional texture. In the shinier moments, there’s a brightness and confidence that echoes the present stage of her life. The Life of A Showgirl presents itself as her most conversational record yet, allowing her charm and personality to emerge without sacrificing her integrity as a songwriter. 

Swift has always blurred the line between persona and person, but The Life of a Showgirl leans into the artifice in order to break it down. This is not her most confessional record, but it might be her most cohesive in concept. It's a balancing act between commentary and catharsis, between letting go of the past and owning it. The show goes on, but it’s on her terms.

The Life of a Showgirl is out now. Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl hits cinemas across Australia tomorrow.