After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference classic performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the late-century pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
