Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
These artists and other chart toppers also draw on classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, 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 apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Classic Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
She says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. It’s something Swift references in a latest documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes 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.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where no one falters.
