Following a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a world where nobody misses a mark.
