After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed critics who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star 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, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls evoke nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says this figure are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer references in a recent docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and 149 performances across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I performed. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where no one falters.
