Following a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is back.
A Master of Glitz
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 1990s era teen pop of revealing tops and baggy pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Classic Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” she says.
The Allure of Escape
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer alludes to in a new documentary series that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, workouts and 149 performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my moment so I could recover before I performed. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a realm where nobody falters.
