Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, 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 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says showgirls are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something Swift references in a new docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and countless shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a world where no one falters.
