After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a translucent sequined dress designed 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 significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer references in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and countless concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but crafting this illusion 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 a break from reality. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one makes a mistake.
