After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across world tours in glitter, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
She says this figure are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a new documentary series that shows the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and numerous performances across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a universe where no one misses a mark.
