Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture 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 rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also reference historical performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and modern 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 translucent beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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 popular item among collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says this figure are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still used as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, training and countless concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a world where nobody falters.
