After a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and countless shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could rest before I performed. You are perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a universe where nobody falters.
