After a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other hitmakers also draw on classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las 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. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Swift alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and countless concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a realm where no one falters.
