Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The King of Glitz
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on historical performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the 90s pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift hints at in a latest docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and countless shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a world where nobody falters.
