Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the 90s pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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 vintage enthusiasts.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift hints at in a recent docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and countless concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s simple and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a realm where no one falters.
