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Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.

A Sultan of Sequins

Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, memorable statement.”

A Pop Culture Resurgence

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut 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 ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from Tradition

Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.

But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former 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 encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”

The Coveted Retro Look

For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.

“Showgirls inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”

A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City

She says this figure are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glamour,” she says.

The Allure of Escape

Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion Swift references in a latest docuseries that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.

The performer recalls her own stage routines as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”

Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.