Following a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a realm where no one misses a mark.
