After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus 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, the singer wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“This style inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea the singer references in a latest documentary series that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and countless concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
