🔗 Share this article

Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.

A Sultan of Sequins

Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”

The Musical Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion 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 bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from History

Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are worlds away 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 glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”

The Highly Sought-After Classic Look

For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price 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 classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.

“This style bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City

The expert says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.

The Allure of Escape

The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea the singer references in a latest docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, training and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.

The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and dreamlike.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a world where no one makes a mistake.