After a long-running run on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to dwindling audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who called it a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The King of Sparkle
Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its projected value, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is desiring something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “Today's artists are embracing a glamorous, more dramatic, show-stopping, grand statement.”
A Musical Revival
It’s a look that made its way all the way to the centre of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The crystal-covered bra and thong, plumed armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sparkles, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco told a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
These artists and other successful musicians also take inspiration from 19th-century entertainment forms, including vaudeville and chorus line references. The final look are vastly different from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Coveted Classic Style
For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, Miley Cyrus paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Sabrina Carpenter wore a trio of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“This style evoke nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the legacy of showgirls. “Currently it is considered a sort of ‘safe’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the elegance, the sparkles and the shine but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas
The expert says showgirls are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, showing up at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a lasting figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” the expert says.
An Allure of Transformation
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the allure. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new behind-the-scenes film that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included intense preparations, gym sessions and countless performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “like running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I performed. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this image that it’s effortless and beautiful and magical.”
Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the chaos of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to turn to than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
