After a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Master of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion Taylor Swift references in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Who better to look to than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
