Pas de Deux, Tiré du Second Acte de l'Opera de Sylvie: Exécuté par Mr. Dauberval & Mlle. Allard
Medium
Etching and engraving
Dimensions
Plate: 14 5/8 x 16 15/16 in. (37.2 x 43.1 cm) Sheet: 16 11/16 x 20 1/2 in. (42.4 x 52 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Herbert Mitchell, 2008
Accession Number
2018.839.111
Art Historical Context
This elegant etching and engraving captures a graceful pas de deux from the second act of the 1767 opera *Sylvie*, performed by the celebrated dancers Jean Dauberval and Marie Allard. The print preserves a fleeting moment from the French ballet tradition, where the two artists, renowned for their expressive partnership at the Paris Opéra, embody the refined elegance of 18th-century courtly dance. Their poised figures, captured mid-movement, reflect the period’s fascination with theatrical spectacle and the harmony between music, gesture, and costume. Created through the combined techniques of...
About the Artist
Marie Allard|Jean-Baptiste Tilliard|Louis de Carmontelle|Jean Dauberval|François Basan|Jean-Baptiste Tilliard (French|French|French|French|French|French) · 1742 |1740 |1717 |1742 |1723 |1740 –1802 |1740 |1806 |1806 |1797 |1740
French, 1742–1802|French, 1740?–1813|French, Paris 1717–1806 Paris|French, 1742–1806|Paris|French, 1740?–1813