After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. 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 shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“This style evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still used as an emblem of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer references in a recent documentary series that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified fantasy, flawlessness and a world where nobody misses a mark.
