Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with lamé 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 seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The results are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. 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 today's icons.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an significant price 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 vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who studies the story of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the attraction. This idea Swift alludes to in a latest documentary series that shows the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to look to than such icons, who have always embodied fantasy, flawlessness and a world where nobody makes a mistake.
