Following a three-decade tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Sequins
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
The expert says showgirls are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a universe where no one misses a mark.
