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Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.

The Master of Sparkle

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”

A Mainstream Revival

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.

Pulling from History

Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time 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 Taylor Swift.”

The Highly Sought-After Retro Look

For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.

“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”

More Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas

Chung says showgirls are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.

An Allure of Escape

The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something Swift references in a new documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous shows across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.

Hardy describes her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”

Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than such icons, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.