Following a long-running run on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical critics who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sparkle
Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he told a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Musical Comeback
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. A top stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the late-century pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former 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 encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya honored 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 similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year 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 collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
She says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea the singer references in a latest documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, training and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 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 underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s easy and beautiful and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to look to than these performers, who have always embodied fantasy, flawlessness and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
