After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Glitz
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and numerous shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
