After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A King of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a world where nobody misses a mark.
