Following a 31-year stint on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Master of Sequins
Referred to as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “New stars are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been incorporated by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from Tradition
Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s 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 seemingly today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Look
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star 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 series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is seen as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says showgirls are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a recent docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “like completing an endurance race in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s effortless and beautiful and dreamlike.”
It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a world where no one misses a mark.
