After a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other successful musicians also reference 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya 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 created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea Swift references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and 149 shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
