After a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Coveted Classic Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift references in a latest behind-the-scenes film that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and 149 performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s simple and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
