Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and countless shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a universe where no one misses a mark.
