After a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Master of Sequins
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, revealing designs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Retro Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, 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. Later that year, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously 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 favorite among collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer hints at in a recent documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and numerous shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. 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 maintaining this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a world where no one makes a mistake.
