Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
These artists and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Retro Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic 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 reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star 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 series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
She says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift references in a latest docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.