Following a 31-year tenure on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes crafted by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and critical commentators who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.
The Master of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance 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 stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Musical Resurgence
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by music artists including Dua Lipa as they zoomed across concert platforms in glitter, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 50s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The final look are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and baggy pants, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an broad label encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”
The Highly Sought-After Retro Style
For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, Miley Cyrus paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie tasseled mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic evoke nostalgia for a past glamour,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
A Than Simply Style: An Icon of the City
Chung says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.
An Allure of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the transformative effect of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something the singer hints at in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, workouts and countless concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
Hardy explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the steps to the platform from the green rooms 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 performed. You are working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s easy and beautiful and magical.”
It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl really resides. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than showgirls, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where no one misses a mark.
