After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on historical performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion Swift references in a latest docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 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 lower level. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one falters.
