Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. 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 glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, 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, Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Swift references in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a world where no one makes a mistake.
