🔗 Share this article

After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last perfectly timed kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl style, is back.

A King of Glitz

Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a silver and gold tasseled bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are embracing a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”

The Mainstream Revival

It’s a look that made its way all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.

Drawing from Tradition

Lipa, Carpenter and other chart toppers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.

But some critics are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly Taylor Swift.”

A Highly Sought-After Classic Style

For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, a style icon paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actress wore a see-through sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, Miley Cyrus 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 series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.

“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, head of special collections at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the glitter but without the exposure.”

A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of the City

The expert says showgirls are key to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas does not host any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still used as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas glamour,” she says.

An Appeal of Escape

Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling preparations, workouts and countless shows across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.

Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to start early for my cue so I could catch my breath before I performed. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”

Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for escapism. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always represented dreams, perfection and a universe where no one makes a mistake.