After a three-decade stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 largely due to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered 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 inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer hints at in a new docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 shows across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re perspiring the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to look to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where no one falters.
