Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to 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 crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Vintage Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says this figure are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own stage routines as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where no one falters.
