Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due 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 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century pop style of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift references in a new behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
