Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted 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 explained to a publication. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Retro Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled 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 popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.