How 'Showgirl Glamour' Became the Dazzling Look of the New Year
After a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A King of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus 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 collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
She says showgirls are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, workouts and numerous shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always personified dreams, perfection and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.