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Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.

A Sultan of Glitz

Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”

The Musical Resurgence

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.

Drawing from the Past

Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are poles apart from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.

But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”

A Coveted Classic Look

For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.

“This style inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the exposure.”

A Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas

The expert says this figure are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.

The Appeal of Illusion

The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and countless concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.

The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress 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 basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”

It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.