Following a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his trademark look, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer references in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, training and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own stage routines as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. One is sweating the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, perfection and a world where no one falters.
