Following a 31-year run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! gave one last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes created by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The King of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed 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 desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a show-stopping, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”
A Pop Culture Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and glittering headpiece were perfect for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in glitter, cut-outs and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also draw on 19th-century performances, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The outcome are poles apart from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. 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 today's icons.”
The Coveted Classic Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among vintage enthusiasts.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still used as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Escape
Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something the singer references in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting preparations, gym sessions and countless concerts across multiple nations, each lasting 3.5 hours.
She explains her own showgirl performances as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the staircase to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the basement. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a realm where nobody falters.
