Mlle Bécat at the Café des Ambassadeurs

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

This vivid scene of a performance by the famed chanteuse Emilie Bécat at the Café des Ambassadeurs captures the spectacle and excitement of the outdoor café-concert in late 19th-century Paris. Here, the spotlighted singer performs her frenzied, comic dance, with arms raised and fingers splayed, in her trademark style épileptique. This print is one of several works Degas made depicting Mademoiselle Bécat based on his fascination with the culture of Parisian café-concerts.