Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The King of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
She says this figure are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, training and numerous shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could rest before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a realm where no one falters.
