After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by 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 trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a recent docuseries that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, training and numerous shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could rest before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a realm where nobody falters.
