After a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s pop style of crop tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are convinced with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer references in a recent behind-the-scenes film that shows the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and 149 shows across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to turn to than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
