Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
The King of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with reflective 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 desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. 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 glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 90s pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says showgirls are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Swift hints at in a new docuseries that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, workouts and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a universe where no one falters.
