After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with 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 the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and countless shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a world where nobody misses a mark.
