Following a 31-year stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of short shirts and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
The Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and 149 performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, perfection and a universe where nobody falters.
