Among the supreme masterpieces of 19th-century art are Edgar Degas' dramatic, incisive and often brilliantly coloured pictures of the ballet. He has enormous popularity as the foremost artist of the dance - with more than half his vast body of paintings, pastels, drawings and sculptures devoted to the on- and off-stage activities of ballerinas - and this catalogue, accompanying an exhibition, illuminates the theme in its historical context. This authoritative volume presents material about Degas as an artist and his relationship with the ballet of his day. He is shown to be knowledgeable about the training and technique of dancers, as he responds to numerous ballet productions at the Paris Opera and the daily routines of the classroom.