After a long-running run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, known for its intricate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to falling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Sultan of Glitz
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists 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 theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift isn't alone. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they whizzed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century pop style of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For millennial and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.
“Showgirls evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City
The expert says showgirls are central to the iconography of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still used as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a latest behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, training and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own stage routines as “like extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my entrance so I could rest before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but creating this image that it’s simple and gorgeous and dreamlike.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than such icons, who have always personified fantasy, flawlessness and a world where nobody misses a mark.
