Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style evoke a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a latest documentary series that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, training and countless performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where nobody falters.
