Following a 31-year stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
The King of Sparkle
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For gen Z and young adult 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 actor wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price 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 classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of 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, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer references in a recent docuseries that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where nobody falters.
