After a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The show, famous for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, showgirl inspirations have been adopted by pop stars including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. A top stylist a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, her performers waved giant ostrich feather fans.
Drawing from History
Modern stars and other chart toppers also take inspiration from 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Coveted Classic Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among collectors.
“Showgirls bring about a sense of longing for a bygone era of glitz,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who documents the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
She says showgirls are key to the identity of Sin City. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This is a notion the singer hints at in a new docuseries that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and numerous concerts across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could recover before I performed. You are perspiring the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to turn to than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a world where no one misses a mark.
