After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “New stars are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an umbrella term encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says showgirls are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Illusion
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, training and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s effortless and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a world where no one misses a mark.
