Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A King of Sparkle
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by 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 shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of 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 at an awards show 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 vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a new docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
