Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A King of Sequins
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance 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 publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a new documentary series that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and countless shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a universe where no one misses a mark.
