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After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

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

The Sultan of Glitz

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”

A Musical Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.

Drawing from History

Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”

A Coveted Classic Look

For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”

More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas

The expert says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.

The Appeal of Illusion

Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent documentary series that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.

She describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”

Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one falters.