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After a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.

A Master of Glitz

Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”

A Mainstream Comeback

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.

Drawing from Tradition

These artists and other successful musicians also reference classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.

But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”

The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look

For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.

“This style evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”

A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas

She says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.

The Appeal of Transformation

Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.

The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”

Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.