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Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.

The Master of Sequins

Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny 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 looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”

A Mainstream Comeback

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.

Drawing from the Past

Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s pop style of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.

But some critics are convinced 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 “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”

The Coveted 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 first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.

“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City

The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.

The Allure of Escape

Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest documentary series that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.

Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”

It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always embodied make-believe, flawlessness and a world where nobody falters.