Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
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 semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents 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 glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea the singer alludes to in a latest docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and countless concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
