Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by singers including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and modern 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 made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
She says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent docuseries that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and 149 performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a world where no one misses a mark.
