How 'Showgirl' Emerged as the Sparkling Look of the New Year

Following a three-decade stint on the iconic Vegas strip, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, famous for its ornate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, came to an end due to falling audience numbers and disappointed critics who labeled it a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

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

The King of Sparkle

Dubbed the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made over-the-top showgirl glamour his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “barely-there” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie crafted for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I think it looks more appealing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they knew from childhood”, he stated in an interview with a publication. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more dramatic, 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 propelled by a chart-topping superstar. Recently, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

She has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been embraced by singers including Sabrina Carpenter as they zoomed across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, illuminated against camp sets. Lipa’s stylist Lorenzo Posocco told Vogue he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Pulling from Tradition

Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on historical entertainment forms, including classic theater and ensemble references. The results are vastly different from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that were popular earlier.

But not everyone are convinced with this showgirl revival. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced 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 even Taylor Swift.”

The Highly Sought-After Vintage Look

For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a famous actress honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a translucent embellished dress made by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price 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 collection of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.

“Showgirls evoke a sense of longing for a past glamour,” says a historian, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ sexy because it has been adapted. It has got all the sophistication, the crystals and the sparkle but without the exposure.”

A Than Just Style: An Icon of Las Vegas

The expert says this figure are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to ex-mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was accompanied by two showgirls. Although Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still employed as an logo of the city, appearing at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glamour,” she says.

The Allure of Illusion

Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the appeal. It’s something Taylor Swift alludes to in a recent documentary series that captures the off-camera action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.

Hardy explains her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headpiece weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the platform from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my entrance so I could rest before I performed. You are working hard the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and gorgeous and ethereal.”

It could be this is where the fascination of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a realm where nobody misses a mark.