Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The King of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Swift hints at in a recent docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a world where no one falters.
