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Degas at the Opéra Virtual Tour

Degas at the Opéra was open for less than two weeks before the Gallery closed, so we have gathered a selection of opportunities to experience the exhibition from home. We hope you enjoy the first show dedicated to Edgar Degas’s fascination with the Opéra—its spaces, the music, and the people involved with the thriving theatrical life of 19th-century Paris. The resources below include research on the Gallery’s collection of works by Degas (the world’s third-largest) as well as video footage captured on the last day the Gallery was open.

The dynamic new virtual tour allows you to explore each room of the exhibition. Click on the different-colored dots to read wall texts, listen to the audio tour, watch related video clips, and more. While available on mobile, this tour is best viewed on a desktop or tablet.

This exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, and the Musées d'Orsay et de l'Orangerie, Paris. BP America is proud to be a sponsor of this Washington, DC, exhibition as part of its support for the arts in the United States. Adrienne Arsht also kindly provided a leadership gift for this exhibition. Additional funding is provided by Jacqueline B. Mars and The Exhibition Circle of the National Gallery of Art. The exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

Read more about this exhibition and Degas's work

Degas's Opéra

Read about the music and theaters that inspired Degas and the people featured in works in this exhibition.

Lecture: Introduction to the Exhibition

Kimberly Jones, curator of 19th-century French paintings at the Gallery, discusses the exhibition—the first on Degas’s enduring fascination with the Opéra. Follow along as she goes room by room to discuss themes and works.

Audio Tour

Listen to the audio tour from the exhibition featuring insights into the works and the subjects depicted. Narrated by Kaywin Feldman, director, with commentary from Kimberly A. Jones, exhibition curator; Julie Kent, artistic director of the Washington Ballet; and Kimberly Schenck, head of paper conservation.

Little Dancer Aged Fourteen

Learn about Degas’s iconic wax figure and the scandal it caused when first exhibited in 1881.

Modeling Movement, Degas’s Dancers

Read in-depth research about three of Degas’s sculptures in the National Gallery of Art. This feature is based on the book Edgar Degas Sculpture (National Gallery of Art, 2010).

Video: Little Dancer Aged Fourteen

This video presents footage of Degas’s masterpiece Little Dancer Aged Fourteen in situ at the National Gallery of Art. This wax statuette is the original version of Degas’s ballerina, the only one he produced himself; the many bronze examples in collections around the world are posthumous casts. Although Degas modeled figures of wax and clay throughout his career, the Little Dancer is the only three-dimensional work that he chose to exhibit during his lifetime. The video provides 360 degrees of footage, as well as close-up shots of the ballerina’s feet, face, and costume.