Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The King of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus 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, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says this figure are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer references in a new documentary series that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, training and countless concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a realm where no one misses a mark.
