Following a three-decade tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
The Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also draw on historical performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Coveted Retro Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show 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 hit among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. This idea the singer alludes to in a latest documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a world where nobody misses a mark.
