After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sequins
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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 vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea the singer alludes to in a latest docuseries that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and countless shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
