Following a three-decade tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The King of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director 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, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. 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 apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya 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. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage 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 past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
The expert says showgirls are central to the imagery of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a new documentary series that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
