After a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the late-century pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Classic Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled 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 hit among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says this figure are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
