Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
The King of Glitz
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a publication. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by 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 new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other successful musicians also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously 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.
“This style evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says this figure are central to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new documentary series that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
