After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer hints at in a latest docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I made my entrance. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s simple and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a world where no one falters.
