Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A King of Glitz
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe 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 embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist her creative director told a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
She says showgirls are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This is a notion Taylor Swift hints at in a latest docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and numerous performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, perfection and a universe where no one falters.
