After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
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 music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Classic Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
She says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and numerous concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own showgirl performances as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody falters.
