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Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

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

A Master of Glitz

Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”

A Mainstream Revival

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut 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.

The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Pulling from Tradition

These artists and other chart toppers also reference historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.

But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”

The Highly Sought-After Classic Look

For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.

“The showgirl aesthetic evoke a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas

The expert says showgirls are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.

An Allure of Escape

Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a recent docuseries that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and numerous performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.

The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and dreamlike.”

Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where nobody falters.