After a long-running run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, workouts and 149 shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 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 underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a realm where no one falters.
