Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer 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 collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of the City
She says showgirls are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and countless concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a world where no one makes a mistake.