Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage 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 an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are central to the imagery of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
