After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also draw on historical performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress created 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 at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea Swift references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
