Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and countless performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
