"Dancers Of The Paris Opera At The Reading - Albert Emile Delluc"
Oil on canvas signed lower left Albert Emile Delluc, depicting a scene of young classical dancers reading. Behind them can be seen a man in costume, reminiscent of the "subscribers," those men dressed in black and sometimes adorned with top hats, whom Degas often depicted in his paintings. These "subscribers" had the right to attend rehearsals and access to the Foyer of the Opera, where they could meet the young dancers in complete serenity. Some ballerinas refused their advances while others, often from more modest backgrounds, worked to find a "protector."