Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also draw on classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the an academic institution, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. This idea the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and numerous performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You are sweating the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
