Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its ornate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a recent docuseries that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She explains her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s simple and beautiful and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a world where no one misses a mark.
