Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sequins
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon 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 called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the 90s pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own stage routines as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage 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 are sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
