Following a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its ornate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sparkle
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. 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 seemingly today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent sequined 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 private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and countless performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
