Following a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl style, is making a comeback.
A King of Sparkle
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Recently, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across world tours in sparkles, revealing designs and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Pulling from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The final look are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. A former performer, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Look
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a translucent beaded 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 private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“This style evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the University of Nevada, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the shine but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” she says.
The Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something the singer references in a recent docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting rehearsals, gym sessions and 149 shows across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy recalls her own stage routines as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a longing for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a universe where no one misses a mark.
