After a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference historical performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 90s Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show 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 vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion Swift references in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, workouts and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
