After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its ornate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A Master of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled 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 younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s 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 modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer 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, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says showgirls are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift hints at in a new documentary series that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and countless shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the platform 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 went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a universe where nobody falters.
