Following a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of short shirts and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star 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, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the shine but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea the singer references in a new behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, workouts and numerous performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s simple and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented dreams, flawlessness and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
