After a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A King of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously 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 favorite among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of the City
The expert says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
