Following a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 90s Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says this figure are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Escape
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer references in a new docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and countless shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could recover before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
