After a 31-year stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The King of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says showgirls are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
The Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something the singer hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and numerous shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage 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 went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody falters.
