After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an significant price 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 collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a latest documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and numerous performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
