Following a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, outfitting everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he told a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of mainstream fashion in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sparkles, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the 90s Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But some critics are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Retro Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“This style inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
The Allure of Escape
The former showgirl says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea the singer alludes to in a recent docuseries that captures the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and 149 shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. What better figure to look to than showgirls, who have always embodied fantasy, perfection and a universe where no one misses a mark.
