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After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.

A Sultan of Sparkle

Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”

A Musical Resurgence

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from History

These artists and other hitmakers also reference historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.

But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”

The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style

For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer 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, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.

“This style inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”

More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas

The expert says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glamour,” she says.

The Allure of Escape

Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer alludes to in a latest docuseries that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and numerous performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.

The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one misses a mark.