After a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sparkle
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an private amount 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 collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a recent docuseries that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a world where nobody falters.
