After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the revue Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, known for its elaborate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and unimpressed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A King of Sequins
Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Today's artists are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, grand statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, spotlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Pulling from History
Modern stars and other successful musicians also draw on historical performances, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 90s teen pop of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently Taylor Swift.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage 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 beaded dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the an academic institution, who studies the history of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”
A Than Simply Fashion: An Icon of Vegas
The expert says this figure are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still used as an emblem of the city, being present at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
The Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the allure. This idea the singer alludes to in a new behind-the-scenes film that documents the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, workouts and numerous shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “like completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps 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 catch my breath before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”
Maybe this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Is there anyone better to emulate than such icons, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a realm where nobody makes a mistake.
