Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The King of Sequins
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 90s pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and countless shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a realm where no one falters.
