Following a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The King of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star 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, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Swift references in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, flawlessness and a realm where no one misses a mark.
