After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Miley Cyrus as they danced across world tours in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star 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 series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer alludes to in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where nobody falters.
