After a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent docuseries that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
