Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference historical performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 90s Britney Spears era of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price 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 vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
The Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a new documentary series that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where no one falters.
