Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a glamorous, more dramatic, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of short shirts and cargo pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and millennial 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 semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
The Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer hints at in a new documentary series that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
She recalls her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece 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 entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, perfection and a realm where no one misses a mark.
