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After a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.

A Sultan of Glitz

Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”

A Mainstream Resurgence

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director 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, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.

Pulling from Tradition

Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also reference classic performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.

But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”

The Coveted Classic Look

For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.

“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”

A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City

She says showgirls are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.

An Appeal of Transformation

The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest documentary series that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and countless shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.

She recalls her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps 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 made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”

Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.