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Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.

The King of Sparkle

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”

The Mainstream Resurgence

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from the Past

These artists and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.

But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. 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 modern pop stars.”

A Highly Sought-After Classic Look

For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.

“Showgirls inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”

More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas

She says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.

The Appeal of Illusion

Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and countless concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.

She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could recover before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, flawlessness and a realm where no one misses a mark.