After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Master of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way 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 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by singers including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The results are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied fantasy, perfection and a universe where no one misses a mark.
