After a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A King of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. 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 crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer 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 classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea the singer references in a new docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and countless performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own stage routines as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
