After a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a recent docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a realm where no one misses a mark.
