After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a shimmering 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 new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says this figure are central to the imagery of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
