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After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.

Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.

The King of Glitz

Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”

The Musical Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.

Pulling from History

Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”

The Coveted Classic Look

For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.

“Showgirls evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the shine but without the bare skin.”

A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas

Chung says showgirls are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.

An Allure of Transformation

The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.

She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”

It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.