After a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. 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 apparently today's icons.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.