After a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
The Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more dramatic, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Retro Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created 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 at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says this figure are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Swift alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
