After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other hitmakers also reference classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Classic Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star 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, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than such icons, who have always personified dreams, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
