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Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

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

A King of Sparkle

Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, grand statement.”

The Musical Resurgence

It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from Tradition

These artists and other chart toppers also reference historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But certain observers are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”

A Highly Sought-After Retro Style

For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute 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 similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, 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, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.

“This style inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”

More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas

She says this figure are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.

An Allure of Transformation

The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Swift alludes to in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.

She describes her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where nobody falters.