After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sequins
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted 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 History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
The expert says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer alludes to in a recent docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and countless shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
