After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show 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 stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert 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, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress created 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 earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a world where no one misses a mark.
