After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A King of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, 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, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something the singer hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and numerous shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
