After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive 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. “Contemporary performers are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due 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 crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
These artists and other hitmakers also draw on historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says this figure are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a new documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a universe where no one misses a mark.
