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Following a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.

A Sultan of Sequins

Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”

A Musical Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from the Past

These artists and other chart toppers also reference historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.

But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”

The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style

For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.

“Showgirls inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”

More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City

She says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.

An Allure of Transformation

The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a new docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.

The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”

Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.