Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The King of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says showgirls are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and 149 shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could rest before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
