After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by 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 rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top 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, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of 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 previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
The expert says showgirls are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
