After a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut 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 sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Swift references in a latest docuseries that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
