After a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Swift hints at in a recent docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and countless performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always embodied make-believe, flawlessness and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
