After a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Master of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says this figure are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to 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 staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and beautiful and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than such icons, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where no one falters.
