After a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Glitz
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Symbol of Vegas
Chung says this figure are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas spectacle,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a latest behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous shows across 21 countries, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. You are perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, perfection and a realm where nobody falters.
