After a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The results are poles apart from the 90s pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Classic Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer 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, the singer wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Fashion: 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 official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and numerous shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a universe where nobody falters.
