Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other chart toppers also draw on historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a latest documentary series that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a universe where no one misses a mark.
