Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Allure of Escape
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and countless concerts across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a world where nobody misses a mark.
