Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, roughly eight years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Sultan of Glitz
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to music superstars. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a metallic beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 concert sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, breathtaking, memorable statement.”
The Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.
She has company. This year, showgirl references have been incorporated by singers including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, revealing designs and feathers, illuminated against overstated sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the mid-century, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also draw on historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are vastly different from the late-century pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that preceded this trend.
But not everyone are on board with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an catch-all phrase including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”
A Highly Sought-After Vintage Style
For gen Z and young adult stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, a singer 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, Carpenter wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about nostalgia for a bygone era of glitz,” says a historian, an expert at the an academic institution, who researches the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”
More Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says this figure are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining icon of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
The Appeal of Escape
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new docuseries that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous shows across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the green rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could recover before I performed. One is sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and gorgeous and ethereal.”
It could be this is where the appeal of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for escapism. What better figure to emulate than showgirls, who have always personified dreams, flawlessness and a world where no one falters.
