Following a three-decade tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also draw on classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
She says this figure are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, workouts and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area 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 recover before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, perfection and a world where no one falters.
