Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the 90s pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“This style evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says showgirls are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
