After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the imagery of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something Swift references in a recent docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, workouts and numerous shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a universe where no one falters.
