Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A King of Sequins
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
These artists and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
She says this figure are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something Swift references in a new docuseries that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and 149 shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is sweating the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
