Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its elaborate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Currently, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
A Master of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, seven times its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Recently, the music phenomenon 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 sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and plumes, illuminated against camp sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are convinced with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through embellished dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus 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, the singer wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, showing up at gatherings and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something the singer hints at in a recent docuseries that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, training and numerous shows across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my cue so I could rest before I went on stage. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and beautiful and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody falters.
