After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
These artists and other hitmakers also reference classic performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded 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 fashion collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea the singer hints at in a recent documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always personified dreams, perfection and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
