Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer references in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and countless concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to emulate than such icons, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one falters.
