Why 'Showgirl' Emerged as the Sparkling Look of This Year
After a long-running tenure on the Las Vegas strip, the dancers from the production Jubilee! took a final choreographed kick in 2016. The show, renowned for its ornate costumes designed by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, ended its run due to declining audience numbers and critical reviewers who called it a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Currently, almost a decade later, the showgirl persona, or at least the showgirl aesthetic, is experiencing a revival.
A Master of Sequins
Referred to as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his trademark look, outfitting everyone from screen legends to Madonna. Recently, a “see-through” bodysuit he designed for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, far exceeding its estimated price, while a shimmering fringed bodysuit with lamé wings that Mackie created for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more attractive for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they were accustomed to”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are pushing toward a theatrical, more spectacular, breathtaking, grand statement.”
The Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 thanks to a global pop icon. In the past few months, the entertainment titan wore one of Mackie’s original Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her latest record. The crystal-covered bra and thong, feathered armbands and sparkly headpiece were tailor-made for a record titled The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by singers including Dua Lipa as they danced across concert platforms in sparkles, revealing designs and plumes, spotlighted against theatrical sets. A top stylist a fashion expert told a style publication he wanted to bring “a stage persona” to her Radical Optimism tour – inspired by pictures from the 1950s, her performers wafted giant feathered fans.
Drawing from History
These artists and other hitmakers also draw on 19th-century entertainment forms, including classic theater and dance line references. The results are worlds away from the 90s teen pop of short shirts and cargo pants, and hip-hop inspired dance moves that came before them.
But certain observers are convinced with this glamour resurgence. Nancy Hardy, a ex- Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word term is being “used as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now seemingly today's icons.”
The Highly Sought-After Classic Look
For gen Z and millennial stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become incredibly sought-after. In 2024, a famous actress paid tribute to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a semi-sheer embellished dress designed by the designer in 2001, which was inspired by one he designed for Cher to wear in 1967. Months after, a singer paid an private amount to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, the singer wore a trio of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a favorite among fashion collectors.
“The showgirl aesthetic inspire fond memories for a historical elegance,” says a historian, an expert at the a Las Vegas university, who studies the story of showgirls. “Today it is seen as a sort of ‘acceptable’ allure because it has been modified. It has got all the sophistication, the sparkles and the glitter but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Style: An Symbol of the City
The expert says the showgirl image are integral to the imagery of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied 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 marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas spectacle,” the expert says.
An Appeal of Transformation
Nancy Hardy says the complete change of a showgirl persona is part of the allure. It’s something Swift alludes to in a new documentary series that shows the behind-the-scenes action from her massive 2023 Eras tour, which included intense rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous performances across multiple nations, each going on for 3.5 hours.
She explains her own nights in the spotlight as “comparable to completing an endurance race 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 dressing rooms three floors below in the lower level. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but maintaining this fantasy that it’s easy and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really is found. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for fantasy. What better figure to emulate than such icons, who have always personified make-believe, idealism and a world where no one falters.