Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. A top stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to 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 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 favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says this figure are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still used as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
