Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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 favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a latest documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and 149 shows across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
