Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather 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 pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial 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 earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are central to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea Swift alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and countless performances across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
