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After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.

The King of Glitz

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”

A Mainstream Resurgence

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.

Drawing from the Past

Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But not everyone are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”

The Highly Sought-After Classic Style

For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded 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 favorite among vintage enthusiasts.

“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”

More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas

Chung says this figure are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.

An Appeal of Transformation

The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and countless concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.

She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one misses a mark.