After a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, 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 crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, 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 ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum 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 retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Escape
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a latest docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and countless shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a world where nobody falters.
