After a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sparkle
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“This style evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
She says this figure are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where nobody makes a mistake.