Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a publication. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted 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 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Retro Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“This style bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, 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 modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and numerous performances across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always represented dreams, flawlessness and a realm where no one misses a mark.
