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Following a long-running stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The show, known for its ornate costumes crafted by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to declining audience numbers and disappointed commentators who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Now, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is experiencing a revival.

The Master of Glitz

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic showgirl glitz his trademark look, clothing everyone from Hollywood icons to Madonna. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its initial estimate, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more enticing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he told a publication. “New stars are embracing a show-stopping, more theatrical, show-stopping, entrance-making statement.”

A Mainstream Resurgence

It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 thanks to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The bedazzled bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were ideal for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl references have been adopted by music artists including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across concert platforms in sequins, cut-outs and plumes, illuminated against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers waved giant plumed accessories.

Drawing from Tradition

Modern stars and other hitmakers also reference 19th-century entertainment forms, including burlesque and chorus line references. The outcome are poles apart from the 1990s era Britney Spears era of crop tops and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.

But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s 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 seemingly modern pop stars.”

A Coveted Retro Style

For millennial and modern stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the actress wore a translucent beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a collection of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.

“This style evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says Su Kim Chung, a curator at the an academic institution, who researches the story of showgirls. “Currently it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”

A Than Just Style: An Icon of the City

The expert says the showgirl image are central to the iconography of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at gatherings and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining symbol of Las Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.

An Allure of Transformation

Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a stage character is part of the attraction. This is a notion the singer hints at in a latest docuseries that documents the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and countless concerts across multiple nations, each running for 3.5 hours.

Hardy describes her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to support it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the backstage area three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my moment so I could catch my breath before I went on stage. You are sweating the whole time but crafting this illusion that it’s easy and beautiful and dreamlike.”

It could be this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. Is there anyone better to look to than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody falters.