How 'Showgirl Glamour' Became the Glittering Aesthetic of the New Year

Following a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the performers from the production Jubilee! gave one last synchronised kick in 2016. The production, famous for its intricate costumes designed by American fashion designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and critical critics who labeled it a spectacle “trapped in time”.

Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the showgirl style, is back.

A King of Sequins

Dubbed the “sultan of sequins”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his defining aesthetic, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he created for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded 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 new generation of stars who is looking for something other than what they were accustomed to”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are striving for a glamorous, more spectacular, breathtaking, entrance-making statement.”

The Mainstream Revival

It’s a look that glided all the way to the epicenter of the cultural zeitgeist in 2025 propelled by a global pop icon. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s classic Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record called The Life of a Showgirl.

She is part of a trend. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by pop stars including Sabrina Carpenter as they danced across arena stages in glitter, cut-outs and plumes, highlighted against overstated sets. Lipa’s stylist a fashion expert mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, the backup dancers wafted giant plumed accessories.

Drawing from the Past

Modern stars and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and chorus line references. The outcome are worlds away from the late-century Britney Spears era of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.

But certain observers are enthusiastic with this glamour resurgence. An ex-showgirl, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the early 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly modern pop stars.”

A Coveted Classic Look

For millennial and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the star wore a see-through sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, another pop star paid an private amount to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn at an awards show to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a collection of retro Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.

“This style bring about nostalgia for a historical elegance,” says a historian, a curator at the University of Nevada, who studies the legacy of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been adapted. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the glitter but without the exposure.”

A Than Just Fashion: An Icon of Vegas

She says the showgirl image are key to the imagery of Sin City. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during civic functions, was flanked by two showgirls. While Las Vegas currently lacks any showgirl-centric productions, Chung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at corporate events and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a enduring symbol of Las Vegas glamour,” the expert says.

The Allure of Transformation

The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a latest documentary series that documents the backstage action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, training and 149 performances across 21 countries, each going on for 3.5 hours.

The performer explains her own showgirl performances as “comparable to running a marathon in high heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 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 head up ahead of time for my moment so I could rest before I went on stage. One is perspiring the whole time but creating this illusion that it’s simple and stunning and dreamlike.”

Perhaps this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the busyness of 2025 there is a desire for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than these performers, who have always embodied dreams, flawlessness and a universe where no one falters.