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Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.

A Master of Glitz

Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”

The Pop Culture Revival

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

Swift isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.

Pulling from History

Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.

But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”

A Coveted Retro Style

For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled 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 hit among vintage enthusiasts.

“This style inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”

A Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City

The expert says the showgirl image are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.

The Appeal of Escape

The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a new documentary series that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.

The performer recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to emulate than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.