On With the Show

Broadcast in more than 180 countries, the $12 million made-for-TV event attracts the world's top models and features A-list musical guests, all designed to burnish the Vanity Fair brand and send viewers to the Web or the company's 1,000-plus retai outlets (though they can't actually buy many of the outfits seen in the show). The show gets more national media attention than anything on the wunways at New York Fashion Week.

"I'm always nervous. Anything can happen," says Alessandra Ambrosio (pictured at center) about the annual show that can add millions of dollars to a model's earning power.

PHOTOS: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

Erin Heatherton

Erin Heatherton models a look from the "Club Pink" collection, which included electric wings and one bra with flashing neon hearts on the cups. 

Says Victoria's Secret's Monica Mitro: "It's the only one-hour network show dedicated to a single brand. It puts our brand in front of millions of people around the world during the crucial holiday period."  And it works: Victoria's Secret, founded in 1977, last year raked in net sales of $5.5 billion.

STORY: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011: Inside the Star-Studded Celebration (Photos)

Izabel Goulart

Parasol wings are attached to the bustle of Izabel Goulart's skirt.

Despite the revealing outfits, the show stays within the bounds of propriety, attrracting a 60% female audience, the same as for most broadcast TV programs. Says CBS' Jack Sussman, who oversees production: "We are a big-tent broadcaster. We want everybody." He describes the decency filter he uses in deciding what to air as: "Do my two teenage daughters want to see it? Will my wife watch it? And will my mother not turn it off? And this show gets through that filter.

PHOTOS: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

Lily Aldridge

Lily Aldridge, modeling one of the "Ballet" costumes at a preshow fitting, says backstage at the runway show is pandemonium. "There's girls everywhere, people running around, wings being thrown, lingerie being thrown." 

IMG Models has nine women in the runway show including Aldridge and Candace Swanepoel, all of whom have lucrative contracts as Victoria's Secret spokesmodels.

PHOTOS: Models Turned Movie Stars

Chanel Iman

Chanel Iman, who says she struggles to keep weight on, gained 15 pounds for the runway show. The night before, she says, "I have a big pot-luck at my house." 

STORY: Victoria's Secret Model Adriana Lima: No Solid Food or Water Before the Fashion Show

Lindsay Ellingson

Lindsay Ellingson wows photographers at a preshow photo op.

STORY: Victoria's Secret Model Adriana Lima Survives Lingerie Show Without Food or Water

Ieva Laguna & Bregje Heinen

Ieva Laguna and Bregje Heinen strike a pose backstage.

PHOTOS: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj wore gold high-top sneakers and sported pink locks while performing "Super Bass."

STORY: Kanye West, Maroon 5 to Perform at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

Todd Thomas

"We are designers. And what we do has an impact on what designers do next year," says collection designer Todd Thomas (second from right), with model Chanel Iman, stylist Neophitou and executive vp Monica Mitro (right).

STORY: Victoria's Secret's Miranda Kerr to Sport $2.5 Million Bra

Wing Maker

A dresser works on one of the 31 unique pairs of "wings"– homages in glitter and styrofoam to the company's signature Angel bra — featured in this year's show. "They're really heavy," says Alessandra Ambrosio. "But they're so beautiful, and what really matters is how much they sparkle and the effect that they have on the runway." 

PHOTOS: Models Turned Movie Stars

Lily Donaldson body jewelry

Body jewelry for one of model Lily Donaldson's costumes. 

PHOTOS: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

Angels Aquatic

Sketch from the Angels Aquatic collection. 

STORY: Victoria's Secret's Miranda Kerr to Sport $2.5 Million Bra

Lily Donaldson accessories

Accessories for one of Lily Donaldson's outfits are tacked to the wall. 

PHOTOS: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011

Runway Lineup

Photos of 69 looks to be worn are organized on a white board at Victoria's Secret Manhattan headquarters. 

PHOTOS: Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011