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After a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is back.

A Master of Glitz

Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”

The Pop Culture Revival

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.

Pulling from History

These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”

The Highly Sought-After Classic Look

For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, 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. Months after, a singer 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 collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the shine but without the bare skin.”

More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas

The expert says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.

An Allure of Illusion

Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.

She explains her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support 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 entrance so I could rest before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”

Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.