Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The King of Sequins
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé 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 desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says this figure are integral to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and countless performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
