Following a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! gave one last choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Sequins
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, 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 series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of the City
She says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still used as an logo of the city, being present at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Transformation
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the allure. This is a notion Swift references in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
