Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon 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 reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
She says showgirls are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift hints at in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a universe where nobody falters.
