Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says this figure are central to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea the singer hints at in a latest docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
