Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed 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 younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent docuseries that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
