Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A King of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. 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 apparently today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are integral to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian 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 symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a latest docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to emulate than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
