Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed 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 looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original 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 called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously 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 fashion collectors.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift references in a latest docuseries that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, training and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one misses a mark.
