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An 1874 oil on canvas painting, The Dance Class, by Edgar Degas (1834-1917), the French impressionist painter. The expert conducting the class, probably an examination in the Paris Opera, is Jules Perrot (1810-1892). The scene is one that typically interested Degas – where dancers ready themselves for an important moment, in this case, their individual performance of a particular movement to be judged by Perrot. This work was shown in the 1876 Impressionist Exhibition in Paris. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)