Following a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over 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 enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also draw on classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount 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 series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something the singer references in a recent docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and countless shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified fantasy, flawlessness and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
