After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress created 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 previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and countless performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.
