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Overview

Dancers Backstage depicts an informal, behind-the-scenes moment at the ballet—the type of scene that most intrigued Degas. Four figures occupy the painting: a dancer who stands onstage with her back to the viewer and a group of three figures—two dancers and a man in black evening clothes—who stand just offstage behind a painted stage flat.

The interaction between the man and the dancer to his left is the fulcrum of the composition. The man’s attire marks him as an abonné, one of the wealthy male subscribers to the Paris Opéra. Accorded the privilege of backstage access, the abonnés often lurked in the wings while productions were under way and flirted with the young dancers. There can be no mistaking the man’s intentions toward the woman beside him. In response, the dancer has turned away, her stance—head tilted down and arms folded—suggesting indifference.

Given its modest scale and rapidly painted surface, Dancers Backstage may have been intended as a sketch for a larger work. No such work was ever executed, however, and it is equally possible that Degas considered this jewel-like painting fully realized. He showed it to great acclaim in 1881 at the sixth impressionist exhibition.

Inscription

upper right: Degas

Provenance

Théodore Duret [1838-1927], Paris; (his sale, Galerie George Petit, Paris, 19 March 1894, no. 12); purchased by (Durand-Ruel, Paris); transferred 27 February 1895 to to (Durand-Ruel, New York); sold 31 December 1928 to (Alex Reid & Lefèvre, Glasgow and London);[1] possibly sold 1929 to D.W.T. Cargill [1872-1939]. [2] (Carroll Carstairs Gallery, New York); sold 3 June 1948 to Ailsa Mellon Bruce [1901-1969], New York;[3] bequest 1970 to NGA.

Exhibition History

1881
Possibly Le 6me Exposition de Peinture [Sixth Impressionist Exhibition], Paris, 1881, as Vue de coulisses, not in catalogue.
1949
A Loan Exhibition of Degas for the Benefit of the New York Infirmary, Wildenstein, New York, 1949, no. 78, repro., as On the Stage
1961
French Paintings of the Nineteenth Century from the Collection of Mrs. Mellon Bruce, California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, 1961, no. 18, repro
1966
French Paintings from the Collections of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon and Mrs. Mellon Bruce, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1966, no. 61, repro
1984
Degas: The Dancers, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1984-1985, no. 5, repro.
1987
The Private Degas, Arts Council of Great Britain, The Whitworth Gallery, University of Manchester; The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 1987, no. 41, repro.
2006
Degas: o universo de um artista [Degas: The Universe of an Artist], Museu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand, 2006, unnumbered catalogue, repro.
2008
The Dancer: Degas, Forain, and Toulouse-Lautrec, Portland (Oregon) Art Museum, 2008, unnumbered catalogue, pls. 47, 55, and 152.
2009
De la Scène au tableau, Musée Cantini, Marseille; Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto, Rovereto; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, 2009-2010, no. 164, repro.
2011
Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Masterpieces from the National Gallery of Art, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; The National Art Center, Tokyo; Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, 2011, no. 16, repro.
2013
Intimate Impressionism from the National Gallery of Art, Museo dell'Ara Pacis Augustae, Rome (exhibition title in this venue: Impressionist Gems); California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco; McNay Art Museum, San Antonio; Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo, Seattle Art Museum, 2013-2016.
2018
Innovative Impressions: Prints by Cassatt, Degas, and Pissarro, The Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa, 2018, no. 42, repro.
2019
Degas at the Opera, Musée d'Orsay, Paris; National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2019-2020, no. 274, repro.

Bibliography

1946
Lemoisne, Paul André. Degas et son oeuvre. 4 vols. Paris: Arts et metiers graphiques, 1946-1949: III: 596, no. 1024, repro.
1970
Minervino, Fiorella. L'Opera Completa di Degas. Milan, 1970: no. 859, repro.
1975
European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 100, repro.
1978
Small French Paintings from the Bequest of Ailsa Mellon Bruce. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1978: 24, repro. (continuing exhibition beginning in 1978).
1984
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 478, no. 708, color repro.
1985
European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 121, repro.

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