After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
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 music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a new docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
