🔗 Share this article

Following a three-decade stint on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The show, famous for its elaborate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Currently, roughly eight years later, the showgirl, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is making a comeback.

The King of Sparkle

Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glamour his signature style, dressing everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, well over its projected value, while a shimmering beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more enticing for the emerging artists who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “Contemporary performers are striving for a show-stopping, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making 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 chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across world tours in glitter, cut-outs and feathers, highlighted against camp sets. Her fashion curator Lorenzo Posocco told a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from the Past

These artists and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including burlesque and dance line references. The final look are poles apart from the late-century Britney Spears era of revealing tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.

But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “treated as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”

A Coveted Retro Look

For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s classic designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya paid tribute to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent sequined dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Later that year, 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 trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.

“The showgirl aesthetic evoke fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been updated. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

A Than Simply Style: An Icon of Vegas

The expert says the showgirl image are key to the identity of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during official events, was surrounded by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still featured as an emblem of the city, being present at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.

An Appeal of Escape

Hardy says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea the singer hints at in a recent docuseries that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.

The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “similar to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to wear it all the way up the steps to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the lower level. I had to head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I made my entrance. You are working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and gorgeous and magical.”

Maybe this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always represented dreams, idealism and a realm where nobody falters.