After a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, 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 glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Coveted Retro Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, 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 trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea Swift alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
