Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco 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 1950s, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
She says this figure are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a world where no one falters.
