How 'Showgirl' Became the Sparkling Style of the New Year
Following a 31-year tenure on the iconic Vegas strip, the dancers from the revue Jubilee! took a final perfectly timed kick in 2016. The production, known for its elaborate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Now, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
The Sultan of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna. Recently, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its estimated price, while a silver and gold fringed bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a newspaper. “Contemporary performers are embracing a theatrical, more theatrical, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”
A Mainstream Comeback
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 largely due to a global pop icon. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her new musical project. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and glittering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Dua Lipa as they danced across world tours in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director explained to a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the 50s, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.
Drawing from the Past
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical entertainment forms, including vaudeville and dance line references. The outcome are vastly different from the 1990s era pop style of crop tops and baggy pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But not everyone are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a one-time Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an umbrella term covering everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now apparently modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Retro Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum 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 collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among vintage enthusiasts.
“Showgirls bring about fond memories for a bygone era of glitz,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who researches the history of showgirls. “Currently it is seen 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 nudity.”
A Than Just Fashion: An Symbol of the City
Chung says this figure are integral to the imagery of Vegas. She points to one-time leader Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was flanked by two showgirls. Even though Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Jung says they are still featured as an symbol of the city, showing up at corporate events and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Allure of Illusion
The former showgirl says the transformative effect of a showgirl is part of the appeal. This idea Taylor Swift hints at in a new documentary series that captures the behind-the-scenes action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and numerous performances across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer explains her own stage routines as “comparable to completing an endurance race in stilettos every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the stage from the green rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to start early for my cue so I could recover before I made my entrance. You’re working hard the whole time but creating this fantasy that it’s simple and stunning and ethereal.”
Perhaps this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really lies. In the complexity of 2025 there is a longing for fantasy. Who better to emulate than such icons, who have always represented fantasy, flawlessness and a world where nobody falters.