Following a long-running tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The King of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, flawlessness and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
