After a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other chart toppers also reference classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
She says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea the singer alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, workouts and countless performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a world where nobody misses a mark.
