🔗 Share this article

After a three-decade tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its elaborate costumes designed by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

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

A Master of Glitz

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical stage sparkle his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to music superstars. Earlier this month, a “barely-there” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“In my view it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a publication. “New stars are pushing toward a glamorous, more theatrical, attention-grabbing, memorable statement.”

A Mainstream Comeback

It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were ideal for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they whizzed across world tours in sequins, strategic openings and feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Her fashion curator 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, Lipa’s dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.

Pulling from Tradition

Lipa, Carpenter and other successful musicians also take inspiration from classic entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.

But not everyone are on board with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who entertained in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word term is being “employed as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently today's icons.”

The Coveted Classic Look

For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress made by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer 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, Sabrina Carpenter wore a series of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among collectors.

“This style inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the story of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”

A Than Just Style: An Symbol of Vegas

The expert says this figure are key to the iconography of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-centric productions, the historian says they are still employed as an emblem of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.

The Appeal of Transformation

The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl persona is part of the appeal. This is a notion Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that captures the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling practice sessions, gym sessions and countless performances across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.

Hardy recalls her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. One is working hard the whole time but crafting this image that it’s simple and stunning and magical.”

Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to turn to than these performers, who have always represented make-believe, flawlessness and a universe where no one misses a mark.