After a 31-year stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new docuseries that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. What better figure to look to than such icons, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a world where nobody misses a mark.
