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After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.

A Sultan of Glitz

Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”

The Musical Comeback

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.

Pulling from History

Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also reference historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.

But not everyone are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”

The Highly Sought-After Classic Look

For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an significant price 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 popular item among vintage enthusiasts.

“Showgirls inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas

The expert says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.

The Allure of Transformation

Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, training and numerous performances across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.

She explains her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”

It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a realm where nobody falters.