Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
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 dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks 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 new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist her creative director explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the 90s Britney Spears era of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum 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 retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about nostalgia for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “similar to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a universe where no one falters.
