After a three-decade tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says this figure are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift references in a new docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and countless performances across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one misses a mark.
