After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent documentary series that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied fantasy, perfection and a world where nobody falters.
