Following a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, being present at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and countless shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
