Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the late-century pop style of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift references in a latest documentary series that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and magical.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a world where nobody misses a mark.
