After a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The King of Sequins
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on classic performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the history of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the shine but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, appearing at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. It’s something the singer alludes to in a new docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, gym sessions and countless performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody falters.
