Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says this figure are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and 149 performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.
