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Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.

The Sultan of Glitz

Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”

The Mainstream Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.

Pulling from History

Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.

But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”

The Coveted Classic Style

For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”

More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas

The expert says this figure are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Jung 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 figure of Vegas spectacle,” she says.

An Appeal of Illusion

Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and 149 performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.

Hardy describes her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”

Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.