Following a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The King of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum 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 vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says this figure are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a latest docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a universe where no one falters.
