Following a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided 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 classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also reference classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Vintage Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the an academic institution, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
The Appeal of Transformation
Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a universe where no one makes a mistake.
