After a long-running run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the revue Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its elaborate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed critics who labeled it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
The Master of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, dressing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I believe it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are embracing a show-stopping, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
The Pop Culture Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the epicenter of popular culture in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been embraced by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in sequins, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against overstated sets. Her fashion curator a fashion expert explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, her performers waved giant feathered fans.
Drawing from Tradition
These artists and other chart toppers also reference 19th-century performances, including burlesque and chorus line references. The results are poles apart from the 1990s era pop style of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But some critics are on board with this showgirl revival. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “puzzling”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an broad label covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Coveted Vintage Look
For younger and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among vintage enthusiasts.
“This style bring about a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the nudity.”
More Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
She says this figure are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-centric productions, Jung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at gatherings and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring icon of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a showgirl is part of the allure. It’s something the singer references in a latest docuseries that shows the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and countless performances across 21 countries, each lasting 3.5 hours.
The performer recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I went on stage. You’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this image that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to look to than showgirls, who have always represented fantasy, perfection and a universe where nobody makes a mistake.
