Following a three-decade stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators 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 experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of short shirts and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an catch-all phrase covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Coveted Classic Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the shine but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are central to the identity of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied 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, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer references in a latest documentary series that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her headpiece tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the stage from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, perfection and a realm where no one makes a mistake.
