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After a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.

A Master of Sparkle

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”

The Pop Culture Resurgence

It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from Tradition

Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference historical performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.

But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. 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 modern pop stars.”

The Coveted Retro Style

For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to 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 previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas

The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.

The Appeal of Illusion

Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new documentary series that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.

The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress 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 underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and beautiful and ethereal.”

Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a world where nobody misses a mark.