Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A King of Glitz
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The results are worlds away from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Coveted Retro Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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 favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says this figure are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift alludes to in a latest documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could recover before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, perfection and a realm where nobody falters.
