After a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also draw on classic performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, 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, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, a curator at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says this figure are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift references in a latest docuseries that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a realm where no one misses a mark.
