After a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, a curator at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and countless concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 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 underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.
