Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
The Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
She says this figure are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, workouts and 149 shows across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
