After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a new docuseries that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
