Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress designed 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 tasseled 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 vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea the singer alludes to in a recent docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and countless performances across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a universe where no one makes a mistake.