After a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. 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 seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
The Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a recent documentary series that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and 149 performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
