In the piece a man watches the woman in the foreground who stares through her opera glasses at someone else.
This particular painting is one of several that focused on the theater, a popular pastime in Paris at the time. Unlike Degas, who she often painted with sat side-by-side, Cassatt focused on the spectators rather than the performers, showcasing the dramas within the audience. In the piece a man watches the woman in the foreground who stares through her opera glasses at someone else. Her dismissal of the man’s gaze highlights her independence and alludes to Cassatt’s own increasing social freedom at the time.