Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sequins
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other chart toppers also draw on classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus 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, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer hints at in a latest docuseries that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and numerous shows across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where nobody falters.
