Following a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed 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 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a recent documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, training and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a world where no one misses a mark.
