Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A King of Glitz
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the late-century pop style of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the shine but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City
She says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support 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 moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
