Legendary producer/choreographer Donn Arden received the ultimate Las Vegas tribute after he passed away on Nov. 2, 1994, when the lights on the Strip were momentarily dimmed in his honor. His final creation, Jubilee, would live on for more than two additional decades, but on Feb. 11, the 34-year old topless revue will go dark for the last time. It’s a milestone for Strip entertainment’s historical timeline, representing the inevitable severance of a direct line between contemporary Vegas and its golden era. Jubilee is a legacy of the lavish productions and giant headdresses that could be found at the Desert Inn and The Stardust, The Sands and the Dunes. That era is gone, but for a brief window of time its entertainment can still be experienced.

Arden arrived in Las Vegas in 1950 at the behest of the owners of The Desert Inn. A dancer since childhood, Arden was mentored by choreographer Robert Alton, who became a Broadway director and worked on the film version of Showboat, but by the ’30s Arden had carved out his own reputation, staging shows and working with increasingly larger casts of chorus girls. He traveled to Paris, birthplace of risqué revues, and launched a production at the Lido in 1947. The Lido’s “Bluebell Girls” would inspire Arden’s aesthetic for dancers, including a height requirement, for the rest of his career.

Arden would launch more productions, including a version of the topless Lido show at the Stardust, but by the ’70s, his Vegas focus was on Hallelujah Hollywood at the old MGM Grand (now Bally’s). His penchant for lavish costumes and precision dance numbers had been accompanied by larger and larger budgets, and, by 1980, a vision for a new show began to take shape. Jubilee! (the exclamation point was eventually dropped) would include a Stairway to the Stars for dancers to descend, require a small fortune for feathered and bejeweled costumes designed by Bob Mackie and Pete Menefee, and have massive sets built for segments inspired by the biblical tale of Samson and Delilah and The Titanic.

Unfortunately, much of that would be destroyed by the tragic MGM Grand fire of November 1980. Arden and company manager Ffolliott “Fluff” LeCoque would practically have to start from scratch, but the show opened in July 1981 and helped carry the torch for showgirl revues until it was the last of its kind. It would experience changes—like many Vegas productions it replaced live music with prerecorded tracks—and revisions, but the core of the show remained unchanged. It became a tribute to classic entertainment, holding ground in an increasingly tech-dependent entertainment landscape and providing a last refuge for professional dancers to perform the showgirl steps known as The Donn Arden Walk.

On Dec. 12, two days after LeCoque’s passing at age 92, the cast and crew were informed the show would soon close. As that date approaches, audiences are increasingly populated by returning guests who want to catch it one last time and devoted dancers who want to see the one-of-a-kind show before the opportunity is gone forever. Nearly as significant is the opportunity to take the afternoon backstage tour, during which a dancer guides guests through the massive sets and multilevel stages as well as the dressing rooms and costuming areas. For a brief time, there’s still a chance to see the glory before the last headdress is worn, before the last Donn Arden walk is taken, and before the lights go dim forever.

Bally’s, 7 & 9:30 p.m. Sun. & Tues.-Thurs., 7 p.m. Mon., 9:30 p.m. Sat., $60.25-$122.75 plus tax and fee; special anniversary prices start at $34 plus tax and fee (Sun.-Thurs. only), 18+. 702.777.2782