Following a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A King of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the history of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a latest docuseries that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and countless shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a realm where no one misses a mark.
