After a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift references in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
