After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his signature style, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously 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 fashion collectors.
“This style bring about fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says showgirls are integral to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, being present at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion Swift references in a recent docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and 149 shows across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always personified fantasy, idealism and a world where no one misses a mark.
