Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other successful musicians also reference classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line 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 came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, 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. Later that year, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea the singer hints at in a recent docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody falters.
