Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in glitter, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp 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, the backup dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the 90s pop style of short shirts and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the shine but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says this figure are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one misses a mark.
