Following a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “Today's artists are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
These artists and other hitmakers also reference historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled 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 favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says the showgirl image are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
The Allure of Escape
Hardy says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied make-believe, perfection and a realm where no one falters.
