After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says this figure are integral to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a recent docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and 149 performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
