Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously 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 popular item among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
She says showgirls are central to the imagery 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 showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear 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 leave early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, idealism and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
