Following a three-decade run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.
Referred to as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his signature style, dressing everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “see-through” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, 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 believe it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a media outlet. “Contemporary performers are striving for a glamorous, more dramatic, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across concert platforms in sequins, strategic openings and plumes, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant plumed accessories.
Modern stars and other hitmakers also take inspiration from classic performances, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that came before them.
But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “used as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, another pop star paid an significant price to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style bring about fond memories for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
The expert says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer alludes to in a latest documentary series that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense practice sessions, gym sessions and countless performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race in heels every night”. Her headdress was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”
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 personified dreams, idealism and a world where nobody falters.
Maya Chen is a tech journalist and lifestyle blogger with over a decade of experience covering digital trends and cultural shifts.
