Following a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, 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, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
She says this figure are key to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a new documentary series that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and 149 concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could rest before I went on stage. You are working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a universe where nobody falters.
