Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference classic performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a latest docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a realm where no one misses a mark.
