After a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, known for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of the City
The expert says this figure are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could rest before I performed. You are perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
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 a break from reality. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
