Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The King of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says this figure are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. It’s something Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and numerous shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a universe where no one misses a mark.
