Isaac Mizrahi tells The Guardian his Unzipped-era style legacy is being replaced by fashion he says lacks “real spine,” as he prepares a new cabaret show

Isaac Mizrahi is preparing a new cabaret show while reflecting on his role in shaping late-20th-century fashion culture, including the era associated with his “Unzipped” work. In an interview with The Guardian published on August 11, Mizrahi discussed how the style conversation he helped define in the 1990s connected with personality, humor, and stage-ready presence, and he returned to the question of what makes a look feel both bold and coherent.

Mizrahi described his working space in New York’s Greenwich Village, focusing on the mix of design materials and personal objects that show how he builds ideas across sketches, fabrics, books, and ephemera. He spoke about the creative habits that carry over from fashion-making to performance staging, framing his process as part research and part rehearsal, with the practical work of making garments sitting alongside the theater work of making moments.

On the legacy of “Unzipped,” the designer said the show’s cultural impact came not only from clothes but from the way it created a platform for conversation and camaraderie around style. The interview characterizes “Unzipped” as a defining moment in 1990s fashion, with Mizrahi described as a wit and cultural connector who, in the story’s telling, was “every supermodel’s best friend” during the program’s heyday.

Mizrahi also offered a critical view of contemporary fashion, saying, “Fashion has no real spine any more.” In the interview, the remark is presented as an assessment of how current trends hold together, rather than a specific commentary on a particular brand or season, and it ties back to his broader idea that fashion needs structure, identity, and staying power to feel substantial.

The interview portrays Mizrahi as outspoken in the way he talks about style, but it also emphasizes that his energy is channeled into performance. As he gears up for the upcoming cabaret, he framed the stage as an extension of design thinking, where timing, voice, and audience engagement matter as much as visual impact.

Mizrahi’s comments arrive amid renewed interest in fashion’s media history, including the way designers have used television, books, and live formats to build audiences beyond the runway. In that context, his return to performance suggests a continued effort to connect fashion history to present-day live entertainment, while using humor and personal storytelling as the thread between eras.

The Guardian interview does not provide additional public institutional details within the excerpted framing beyond Mizrahi’s preparation for cabaret. With that in mind, the next step for audiences is to watch for venue and scheduling announcements tied to the cabaret engagement as information becomes available.