Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Classic Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, 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 trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says this figure are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something Swift hints at in a new docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
