Following a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Master of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also draw on 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and countless shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.
