After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” 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 designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled 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 favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new documentary series that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a realm where no one misses a mark.
