After a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A King of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum 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 trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. It’s something Swift alludes to in a new docuseries that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 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 basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
