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After a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

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

A Sultan of Sequins

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”

A Pop Culture Resurgence

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon 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 sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from the Past

Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 90s pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”

A Highly Sought-After Classic Style

For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.

“This style evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”

More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas

Chung says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.

The Allure of Escape

Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, workouts and countless performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.

She recalls 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 steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”

It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a world where nobody misses a mark.