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After a three-decade run on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! executed their last choreographed kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed critics who described it as a spectacle “stuck in the past”.

Now, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.

The Sultan of Sparkle

Known as the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his defining aesthetic, outfitting everyone from Marilyn Monroe to pop royalty. Earlier this month, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 fetched $57,600, far exceeding its initial estimate, while a metallic fringed bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.

“I believe it looks more attractive for the emerging artists who is desiring something other than what they knew from childhood”, he explained to a publication. “Contemporary performers are pushing toward a theatrical, more theatrical, breathtaking, grand statement.”

The Musical Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of mainstream fashion in 2025 largely due to a chart-topping superstar. Earlier this year, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The bedazzled bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.

The singer is part of a trend. This year, glamorous nods have been adopted by singers including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in sparkles, cut-outs and feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl attitude” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, the backup dancers fluttered giant ostrich feather fans.

Drawing from the Past

Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also draw on historical performances, including burlesque and ensemble references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of short shirts and utilitarian trousers, and urban dance moves that came before them.

But some critics are convinced with this showgirl renaissance. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”

A Coveted Retro Style

For younger and young adult stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, Zendaya honored to one of Mackie’s first major stars, Cher, when the actress wore a semi-sheer beaded dress created by the designer in 2001, which was reminiscent of one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, 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, Carpenter wore a series of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among collectors.

“Showgirls evoke fond memories for a past glamour,” says an archivist, head of special collections at the a Las Vegas university, who documents the history of showgirls. “Now it is seen as a sort of ‘safe’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the crystals and the sparkle but without the nudity.”

More Than Just Style: An Icon of the City

The expert says showgirls are integral to the iconography of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any showgirl-based productions, the historian says they are still employed as an logo of the city, showing up at corporate events and in advertisements. “The showgirl is still a remaining figure of Vegas glitz and glamour,” she says.

An Allure of Transformation

Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. This is a notion the singer hints at in a recent docuseries that documents the off-camera action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, workouts and 149 concerts across dozens of cities, each lasting 3.5 hours.

Hardy recalls her own nights in the spotlight as “similar to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her feathered headdress weighed 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the green rooms 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’re sweating the whole time but maintaining this illusion that it’s easy and stunning and dreamlike.”

Perhaps this is where the appeal of the showgirl fantasy really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a desire for a break from reality. Who better to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied make-believe, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.