Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The Master of Sparkle
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously 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 vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are integral to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
