Following a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by music artists including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
These artists and other hitmakers also draw on classic performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own stage routines as “comparable 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 platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
