Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference classic performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
