After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the late-century pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed 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 favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift references in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a world where no one misses a mark.
