After a 31-year run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed critics who called it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are striving for a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Revival
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also reference classic performances, including classic theater and ensemble references. The final look are vastly different from the 1990s era teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
The Coveted Classic Style
For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price 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 popular item among collectors.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 concerts across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She describes her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to emulate than such icons, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
