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Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.

The King of Sparkle

Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”

The Mainstream Resurgence

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.

Pulling from Tradition

These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.

But some critics are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”

The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style

For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”

More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas

The expert says showgirls are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.

An Appeal of Illusion

The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and countless concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.

Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”

Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified dreams, perfection and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.