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Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.

The Sultan of Sparkle

Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, show-stopping, memorable statement.”

A Pop Culture Revival

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from Tradition

Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.

But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”

A Coveted Retro Look

For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.

“This style bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”

A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas

She says showgirls are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol 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.

The Appeal of Transformation

Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a latest documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and countless concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.

She explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”

Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always embodied fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.