Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says this figure are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer references in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her 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 catch my breath before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a world where no one makes a mistake.
