Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Retro Style
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum 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 series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer references in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody falters.
