After a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. 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 inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Swift references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and 149 shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a world where no one makes a mistake.
