After a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the music phenomenon 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 sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer alludes to in a latest docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.
