Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its elaborate costumes crafted by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a publication. “New stars are striving for a theatrical, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
The Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across concert platforms in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco told a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from History
These artists and other chart toppers also reference classic entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of Vegas
The expert says this figure are central to the imagery of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Allure of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the attraction. This idea Swift hints at in a recent behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, workouts and numerous shows across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. One is sweating the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and gorgeous and magical.”
Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Who better to turn to than such icons, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a universe where no one falters.
