Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The King of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including burlesque and dance 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 certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a recent documentary series that documents the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and 149 performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
