Following a 31-year run on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to falling audience numbers and disappointed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The King of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Musical Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director told Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls inspire fond memories for a past glamour,” says a historian, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Transformation
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something the singer references in a new docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, workouts and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “like extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the staircase to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified dreams, idealism and a universe where no one misses a mark.
