Following a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, 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, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who studies the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and countless performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a world where nobody falters.
