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After a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.

A King of Sparkle

Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”

A Pop Culture Revival

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.

Drawing from Tradition

Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.

But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”

The Coveted Vintage Style

For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.

“This style inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”

More Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas

She says showgirls are integral to the imagery of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.

The Appeal of Transformation

Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.

The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”

Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a world where nobody falters.