After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Master of Sequins
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Recently, 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, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference classic performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Vintage Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled 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 popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
She says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift references in a latest documentary series that shows the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a universe where no one misses a mark.
