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After a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, known for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.

The King of Sequins

Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”

The Mainstream Resurgence

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.

Drawing from Tradition

Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.

But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”

The Highly Sought-After Retro Style

For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made 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, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”

More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City

She says showgirls are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.

The Allure of Illusion

Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, workouts and countless concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.

She explains her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”

Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.