After a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think 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. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered 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 bare skin.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Swift references in a recent documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and numerous performances across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a world where nobody falters.
