Following a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
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. 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 rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in glitter, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Coveted Classic Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously 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 popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says this figure are central to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a recent docuseries that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and 149 shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. What better figure to turn to than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
