After a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, nearly ten years 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 over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Retro Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and countless shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where no one misses a mark.
