Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, known for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive 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 pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Vintage Style
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“This style inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
She says showgirls are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift references in a recent docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, training and 149 performances across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could rest before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s effortless and beautiful and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a world where no one makes a mistake.
